Wrong nor Right
by Simply Seth
Summary: Many a Gem ends up wronged by the Diamond Authority. None are righted. It ought to be said, then, that the only methods by which to achieve rightness is by way of those not loyal to the above Diamonds. Prepare to meet one such example...
1. Inject

_Wrong nor Right_

Prologue: Inject

* * *

So it begins.

* * *

It was one of those peaceful, idyllic scenes that would make for a great scenic photograph.

Birds were singin'.

Grass was whistlin' in the wind.

And… well, probably not-so-scenic, but it's still definitely worth mentioning that there was a virtual avalanche of snow falling from a mountaintop in the distance.

Even less so? The cliché-looking elliptical space ship, for that is what it very clearly was in all of its green-on-white glory.

The thing extended its four landing protrusions, touching down softly on the green grass. Once all the landing procedures and such were completed, a motley pair of Gems came out. A tall, yellowish-green one was first, eyes focused on what was immediately in front of her, that being a screen made by her long, elastic fingers. What was visible beneath the clothes of her form was a good deal beefier than the average Gem. Her sharply cut, rectangular gem was on the section of her back that bridged torso and waist. The second one, an orange, semi-muscular Gem of around the other's height., emerged next, carrying a large, needle-like tool of an atypical color in relation to the rest. Her heptagonal source of magic lied on her right cheek.

Both sets of clothes that they wore – a mix of black, white, and gray, with a small white diamond in the center of the chest piece – contrasted sharply with their respective skin colors.

As they walked out, the orange one said, with no small amount of snark: "Nice driving, _Peridot_! I don't get why you don't just let _me_ drive this thing; we both know I'm the better pilot of the two of us!"

"Shut it, Jasper! What would Agate say if she found a Gem like _you_ piloting such a piece of tech as this!?" She then covered her face behind a hand, frowning in frustration. " _Ughhhh_. This wouldn't even be happening in the first place if we weren't on this useless assignment!"

"Why're you even _complaining_ about this!? You should be doing the opposite, 'cause, you know, you're not in the middle of a _war zone_ with those rebels!"

"Well, _Jasper_ , it's because I'm not even able to directly help our allies! _Why_ would I _not_ want to help achieve the Diamonds' wants directly instead of going on this miserly, unnecessary mission!? Plus all of those delays because of those security delays prompted in the first place because of those _cloddy rebels_! And I _hate_ being behind schedule in the first place!" A fist impacted the metal of the ship as the Peridot again growled in aggravation.

The Jasper just raised a brow in befuddlement. "Remind me again how you didn't end up being a Quartz."

A brief glare was shot in the Jasper's direction as the other Gem responded, "Could go into detail as a retort, but not gonna lie? Sometimes I _do_ wish I were a Quartz soldier. At least _then_ I could help fight instead of being here, doing this _pointless_ , poorly timed excuse for an experiment! Why is this even being done in the _middle of a war_!? And _here_ , of all places! In fact, what even _was_ the experiment?"

The Jasper promptly listed off: "In order: Who else but the Diamonds knows? To see if our Era Two tech compared to the stuff thousands of years ago will make a difference when a Gem gestates and emerges in a vertical fashion rather than a horizontal one, as well as to see what happens if a Gem is created without the pre-conceived stuff our tech puts in a Gem's consciousness during creation; Diamonds-knows again; and did _you_ want to question our Diamond to her _face_ after Pink was… well, _you know_ …"

The taller Gem sighed. "Point, point. 's a wonder that _you_ didn't end up being a Peridot. Anyways, let's get this Injector running and get out of here. However much I want to fight, I _know_ I'm outmatched, even with this kind of body…" A prompt grumble.

"Well, at least you won't be out put out by the Authority for not fittin' your niche. Or _worse_."

A hum was all the Jasper got in response as she carefully angled the legs of the device so that it stood perfectly upright. A couple of requests for adjustments from the other Gem later prompted the announcement, "All set! Sure we shouldn't double-check those coordinates though, Peridot?"

"… Nah. I have more important things to be doing: namely, _actually contributing to the war effort_. Let's start it up and leave, Jasper."

The space ship folded in its legs as it began to hover before taking off, leaving the machine to perform the task that it was designed for. It took the thing a few hours of scanning the ground beneath it to calculate the optimal amount of depth at which it should eject its magic to create the optimal conditions for Gem development.

It ought to be considered a shame, then, that the cursed song – that oh-so devastating one that has the unfortunate not-so-little effect of corrupting Gems – rang out during those scant hours needed for the machine to begin its process. The liquid inside turned an odd color, the secret within transforming into an off hue from its original color as well.

Oblivious to any kind of interference, the Injector inserted its drill, plunging the thing deep into the soil. It was well after the saucer had departed from the planet and the song when the when the drill halted, fulfilling its purpose as it emptied a small portion of its magical contents – as well as the unique payload inside the drill itself – into the earth.

It would be over five millennia plus another half 'till the Gem emerged.

* * *

Cue music – _Dark Souls_ soundtrack – _Firelink Shrine_

* * *

Its initial formation vaporized the dirt around it. Having the natural insirnct, it took to burrowing upwards, towards the surface. It took far, _far_ longer than it would have liked thanks to the nature of its limbs, but it managed to dig its way out of the soil it was created in.

Pointed, lance-like protrusions jutted out from the elbow onward, ending not in hands but instead in singular, deadly tips. Even with its being of a height a good deal greater than the average human or Gem, its shaggy, blonde hair dragged along the ground as it struggled to stand upright for the first time of its conscious life. The clothes that helped make up its appearance consisted of little more than rags of various colors stuck to its skin here and there. The skin beneath this psuedo-layer was an off shade the usual skin color of the typical bright-skinned human, leaning more towards orange than white.

Indeed, its appearance pointed to an obvious case of corruption.

It let put a small animalistic hiss of discomfort as the sun's rays made contact with its eyes for the first time, instinctually closing them for a few seconds as to let them adjust. When it opened them again, it took note of its surroundings: the tall mountain ranges, the vast plains, the few animals that could be seen in the distance… it was all so _picturesque_. Even in its clouded state of mind, it could recognize the concept of beauty and know what it looked and felt like. There were several problems that immediately registered in its stinted mind; it didn't quite register _what_ and _why_ it was, why all of the terrain nearby was drained of life (and the loose, vague sensation of negativity that emerged when it thought on the subject), and why it felt so… in a word, _wrong_.

It looked around in a mixture of curiosity and awe before, in a sort of primitive way, it wondered about its final and most immediate issue: ' _What am I supposed to do_ …?'

That is what it is about to discover as it simply picked a direction and walked. After all, nothing of note could be accomplished if it just stood around gawking and pondering…

* * *

 _Author_ ' _s Note_ :

 _Blep_ , goes the silly fanfiction author. _Blep_.

Expect updates to be inconsistent and sporadic in nature because of laziness. As for that other story, that _Pokémon_ one? As has been stated before: all I need is time to get back into it. Patience is all that I would ask of you, reader… aside from _liking commenting and subscribing_!

… Eh, coulda' tried harder. I'll refrain, though; best to save he actual effort for he writing you all _really_ care for.

* * *

Disclaimer:

 _Steven Universe_ and any other referential materials found in this story do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners, and I claim no ownership of them.


	2. Explore

_Wrong nor Right_

Chapter One: Explore

* * *

Gettin' a move on.

* * *

Cue music – _Fire Emblem_ : _Path of Radiance_ soundtrack – _The White Heron_

* * *

The path it took involved woods, creeks, wildlife, and much stumbling (figuratively and physically). Were its thoughts completely lucid, it would have been loathe to admit that it fell flat on its face multiple times. ' _Not my fault I can_ ' _t get the hair out of my vision spheres without threatening to_ stab myself in the face,' is what it probably would have mumbled. Every time its face planted in the dirt, grime covered its face and front with additional layers being added each time it fell. It eventually reached the point where the corrupted Gem looked like a caveman; unkempt, in rags, and not necessarily of an intelligent mind. It _did_ , at the very least, have a pleasant time gazing at the scenery when its face wasn't planted in the dirt. All of the small, unfamiliar lifeforms it came across were all inexplicably eye-catching to it, be it from the miniscule insects to the few deer that is was lucky enough to come across. That was really its only consolation, however, particularly since it hard a hard time seeing even ten feet in front of itself because of the aforementioned conditions.

That distinct feeling of _wrongness_ once again overcame it as it futilely wiped at its face for the _nth_ time. It felt a bout of rage overcome it; it was not _meant_ to be waddling through the mud and being virtually blinded by the limitations of its own _defective_ body, it was _supposed to_ –!

…

A tree had been downed while it had lost awareness, half-circles dotting where the base used to be. The weapons that were its arms were covered in splinters, causing it to whimper, more in discomfort instead of real pain. Gems' forms are tough things, after all; it'll take more than a few small pokes to get one to really be hurting.

What _did_ hurt it were the loud tweets that were emerging from the top of the tree that had just been cut down. The Gem stomped over, thoroughly aggravated at this point, glaring through its hair at the small, ugly creatures that were making that were making those screeching noises over and over again. Before it could make any real move to silence them, however, a larger, slightly less ugly-looking creature swooped in, pecking at its skull a few times before flying away just as the corrupted Gem had a go at swatting it away. It landed next to the smaller, vaguely similar-looking creatures, tweeting in as threatening of a manner as it could at the Gem.

It began marching forward again, but suddenly halted as a wave of recollection hit it. The way that this thing protected those less than it reminded the Gem of–

And then its head was _ablaze_ with pain. It physically _staggered_ at the magnitude of the sensation, prompting it to instinctually back away from the apparent cause of its pain, that being the small animals. When the pain refused to cease, it then opted to sprint away in a random direction , trying and failing to block out the pains of the past.

It only stopped its flight after a couple of straight minutes of exertion, which is was its prolonged running could easily be considered at its fresh-put-of-the-ground, altered state. It just about flopped over beside a tree, half-expecting the clump of wood to fall over as it leaned against it with what happened to the other tree it touched. After a couple of additional seconds of doing nothing, it began to sob, tears ensuing as they dropped from its eyes shortly thereafter. It was only then when all of its worries and sorrows caught up with it; all of the uncertainties, the resultant fear, the lack of purpose, and particularly that sense of _wrongness_ , of _missing_ something of utmost importance… All of this and more served as fuel for this metaphorical blaze of emotion.

Another chunk of time passed as such: curled up, sobbing against a tree, drowning in misery. That, eventually is also how it went to sleep: surrounded in a miasma of negativity as the sun creased over the horizon.

* * *

 _Author_ ' _s Note_ :

Just gonna _blep_ it up again, here. Not a whole lot to say. Expect both to happen a lot, by the by.

* * *

Disclaimer:

 _Steven Universe_ and all other referential materials found in this story do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners and subsidiaries, and I claim no ownership of them.


	3. Willful

_Wrong nor Right_

Chapter Two: Willful

* * *

Touchy feely.

* * *

Cue music – _Iji_ soundtrack – _All That Can Wait_

* * *

Morning arrived all too quickly for the corrupted Gem, with it waking up because of the sun's rays piercing through the thick, tangled mane that was its hair. It woke with some surprising gentleness considering the previous night's emotional storm, cranium shaking as it awkwardly stood itself up with aid from the ends of its two forelimbs. It glanced up through the canopy formed by the collective green of the trees, a bit awed by the constantly changing lightshow that the leaf-wind combination provided. It sat there staring continuously for an untold amount of time, only breaking this when it had to blink; staring at something as bright as the sun isn't healthy for any pair of eyes, human or no.

Finally, it was interrupted from the mesmerizing sight of nature by the sounds of shifting foliage a distance away. Its head whirled around with a speed that would have resulted in a cracking noise were it in possession of the necessary body parts for it, body tensing up as it sprung to its feet. There were some voices, not sounds of nature or of the animals therein. This resulted in an inexplicable mixture of emotions: excitement, for it instinctually knew what entities possessed voices, yet terrified because it also knew what said entities did to _defects_ such as itself. Its subsequent reaction was thusly that of confusion; it glanced back and forth, looking for a place to hide, to the direction the voices were in, to do _something_! But it couldn't make up its mind in time either way; the source of the voices revealed itself to be a pair of small creatures; apparently and evidently Gems, like its instinct had pointed towards. Upon sighting each other, both parties more or less _froze_ , one shocked to see the other, albeit for varying reasons. The bigger of the two did not expect to see such small, seemingly diminutive (judging by their relatively strange choice in appearance) Gems, and the side of greater numbers did not expect to have encountered this… _creature_ during their little curiosity-fueled outing.

After several tense seconds, the mutated Gem snapped out of both its state of stillness and indecision, settling on following its mostly instinct-driven mindset as it slowly paced towards the two smaller entities. The two Gems, in turn, slowly began backing away, the slightly shorter one placing itself in front of the taller one in what was clearly a protective manner. After processing this happenstance, the taller Gem flinched backwards, trembling as it tried to recollect a memory that was both out of reach and not there in the first place, in spite of its thinking it was.

It tried to clutch its head as that same type of pain from the day before overwhelmed it, but couldn't even muster that sort of action because of –once again – its accursed, _defective_ self. It fell to its knees, whimpering loudly, unable to focus even on the particularly important subjects in its own head or even those that were right in front of it. This continued for nearly an entire minute before the two smaller Gems took action, the taller one pushing the shorter one's protective arm aside as it walked towards the in-pain one, clearly concerned. The corrupted one glanced up in confusion as it heard the footsteps slowly but steadily come closer, its whimpers transforming into wary growls.

A hand reached out to touch, as slow and steady as its bearer's initial approach. Nary a second before contact was made, the disfigured Gem pulled back, a tad afraid, growling at the pair in an animalistic fashion in turn. The hand and the possessor thereof promptly retracted some distance. Before it could back away any farther, however, a glare and a small shout from the taller of the two sent it reluctantly towards the Gem for a second time. Now its back was against a tree, the very same it was resting against in fact, and its addled, animalistic mind was easily convinced of such in spite of the empty space with which to easily flee on either side.

So it was that it was forced into accepting a series of calming hand strokes from the smallest of the Gems present. Thankfully the tension faded as such instead of, say, through a more violent confrontation. It took several minutes and a few odd cooing noises from the little Gem for the deformed one to even come close to a state of relaxation, with said progress being lost almost entirely as the other Gem approached. Yet another growl loosed itself from the largest one present, but some more petting of the head succeeded again in calming the psuedo-beast, albeit not to the same extent as before.

The two smaller Gems soon engaged in a discussion that the corrupted Gem simply couldn't hope to understand, what with its disheveled state of mind. It gazed on, feeling a loose sense of awkwardness as the two prattled on, with them appearing to grow more and more heated as the discussion continued. Eventually, the taller of the pair huffed, crossing its arms, thoroughly aggravated. The shortest one present sighed in response, turning to the corrupted Gem and mumbling some words that went straight through one non-existent ear of the Gem's and out the other.

With its piece being said, the two walked off. Be it from a sort of maternal instinct from a previous role in life or some attachment to the first friendly faces it has seen, however, the latter entity deigned to follow them. The two turned around and, noticing this, put a hand up in a stopping gesture. The corrupted Gem recognized this (along with a pulse of pain) and halted. The shorter one, again taking action before the taller one, pointed to the ground a few times. At the corrupted Gem's uncomprehending stare, the small one walked up behind it, gently pushing it towards the ground and into a sitting position. Walking back in front of it, the comparatively miniscule Gem put a hand up as a signal to stop, pointing towards the ground after that.

The one of disfigured form eventually wrapped its head around what it was trying to say: ' _Stay here_.'

It was hardly comfortable with the instruction, however, swiftly getting up and growling right to the small one's face in a challenging sort of way.

Its message in response: ' _Make me_.'

A sigh and mutual worried glance-wince combination followed (particularly from the taller one), with the pair proceeding to discuss in whispers. After a dozen seconds or so, the two smaller Gems reluctantly beckoned the larger one to follow as they left the corrupted Gem's would-be campsite.

Thusly is how he first leg of the Gem's journey ended and another began.

* * *

 _Author_ ' _s Note_ :

A fourth _blep_ for good measure. How's that summertime weather, eh? Or winter if you happen to live in the southern hemisphere. Not _too_ bad either way, I would hope?

* * *

Disclaimer:

 _Steven Universe_ and all other referential materials found in this story do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners and subsidiaries, and I claim no ownership of them.


	4. Sneak

_Wrong nor Right_

Chapter Three: Sneak

* * *

Truly, like Solid Snake.

* * *

It would have taken twenty-odd minutes for the three to get to the goal that the two smaller Gems had set. Somewhere along the line, however, said smaller Gems had made the rather generous assumption that the corrupted one could navigate the tangled, bumpy forest without making a mess of itself. How they hadn't taken into account the myriad of dirt patches and other such unwilling forms of bodily cover escapes logic and reason, but they only _just_ noticed this as it tripped over a brush patch and growled lowly in response. It was pleasantly surprised at the internal sensation it experienced upon being helped to its feet. This swiftly perished the negative thoughts from its head, though they returned nary a minute later when the Gem tripped yet again.

So began the cycle of trip, assist, trip, et cetera until, much to the relief of all persons present, they exited the forested area and entered into a relatively flat grassland. Were it not for the settlement that resembled every bit of the stereotypical small farm town, it would be quite similar to the scene that was observed three chapters previous, minute details aside. The larger Gem couldn't help but be I'll at ease in the face of such a potentially large crowd of other Gems. After all…

 _dontlookatmehideousuglydeformed_ useless _stoprunrunrun_ RUNGO

And then it _was_ running and going. Some shouts from the other two caused it to look back and falter for a moment or two, yet ultimately failed to stay it from its path to… well, wherever _away from others_ would happen to be.

Thusly is how it came to be that it effectively did the same thing twice; that is, leaning against a broken tree, feeling miserable. But this time, there was the added bonus of actual tears and even _darker_ thoughts!

 _whywhywhyhowjustwantwetobegoodbeusefulprovemyselfnononotoolatenonoNOWHYTRAITORHRNGHHH_

Bundle of joy, right here. _Truly_.

It was left alone to its downward-spiraling train of thought for some amount of minutes before the two small one's before trodded up to the downtrodden Gem and, after some indecisive seconds, began giving it pats on the back. Shock was the first reaction it had, then a sort of basic form of appreciation, then more sobbing because of the second.

A couple minutes passed before the corrupted Gem rose, glancing at the two comparatively tiny Gems on either of its sides before moving forward, back whence it came. The other two proceeded to job a bit of distance ahead, for reasons to be seen shortly.

The trio advanced, eventually breaching the treeline a second time. After a moment to calm and recollect itself for the mentally trying times ahead, the deformed one followed after the two that had pulled even farther ahead.

Perhaps a more optimal time for it to have calm itself would have been a minute or so later, for, when they arrived at the town outskirts, the two more diminutive Gems raised their hands into a similar position as before.

' _Stop_. _Wait_.'

And this time, the bigger Gem complied, though struggled to a degree to not to follow after the two as they left its field of vision. So it stood around, patiently at first. Not even two minutes had passed before it began shifting on its feet. Three minutes was the point at which it began to pace around, thoroughly restless in spite of the short time that had passed. At the transpiration of the fourth, it began growling to itself. Its thought process looked something like this:

 _waitwaitwaityescanwaithavewaitedamwaiting_

 _but_

 _takinglonglonglongsoimpatientangstyhurryhurryhurryor_

 _OR_

…

The thing didn't really know _what_ it would do if it was kept waiting for much longer. Running off would be just as pointless as it would be counter-productive to whatever its two companions were planning, and it wasn't a particularly big fan of being and subsequently feeling useless. Destroying the building a short distance away felt loosely tempting, be it because of its somewhat destructive, animalistic mindset or some other factor, but it had enough foresight to realize that that would be a bad idea in the long run. Said temptation was becoming progressively more attractive with each passing minute, however, to the point where it was on the brink of finally succumbing when the two re-arrived.

 _Aaand_ that's more than enough gleaning into the thing's mind for one chapter.

* * *

Cue music – _Metal Gear Solid_ soundtrack – _Intruder 1_

* * *

Thankfully for all parties involved, the other two hadn't brought along any cohorts. That would have probably triggered the deformed one and caused another emotional stand-off or some such. Again, one such happenstance is enough for one chapter, yes?

A follow-me gesture was given to the larger Gem, and after a couple of seconds of hesitation (funny, considering its earlier impatience), it went through the nigh-invisible path of footsteps they made.

Speaking of invisible, it was a good thing it was nighttime rather than day, for it would have caused quite the stirring were it so. As it was, no-one was walking around aside from the three that have been talked of quite a lot already. All save a few of the lights inside the houses had been extinguished, and their footsteps were all but silenced by the surprisingly combination of noisy crickets and nocturnal birds. The smaller ones guided the larger one swiftly from one side of a building to the next, crossing the gravelly center street with all due speed plus some extra.

The time it took for the trio to get to their destination amounted to being just shy of three minutes. The small Gems were thankful for not being spotted during their little escapade, ushering the taller Gem into the door with a certain deal of urgency. It had to duck and tuck its arms inward to fit into the hole provided. After this was accomplished, the door was closed none too quickly behind the tallest one present, and they urged the thing past the stairs and into a rather cramped, dull-looking room filled with pipes and other contraptions. They then fetched a carpet for it to sit on, as the undecorated, concrete floor would indeed have been uncomfortable to sleep on otherwise.

If the situation resembled a "kids attempt to smuggle in an animal and keep it a secret from the folks" trope/cliché, that's because it essentially _is_. Just replace the animal part with unfortunate corrupted Gem, and there you have it!

And this is the almost-as-cliché part where said unfortunate gets tired from exerting its morphed form from all the running from earlier and falls asleep. Not without some added gesticulation to stay put again and minutes spent in relative boredom, however.

It slowly dozed off, awkwardly laying on its sides, legs resting off the edges of the soft surface, to the subtle sounds of the machinery surrounding it.

* * *

 _Author_ ' _s Note_ :

More furious _blepping_ to be had here, it seems. It also seems as if a few people gave this poor lad a bit of attention; shout-outs to Kaoupa for the Follow-Favorite combo, to Sally B. McGill for the Favorite, to abbydobbie for the Favorite-Review combo, and to shadow'n' Reignlover68 for the Review not-combo. In response to the latter three: Here's hoping I bother to keep it up like the rest a' this story, yeah? And y'ain't seen nothin' yet, Reign', trust me.

Oh, and, uh. Shout-outs to me for the cover art, I guess. Painfully average, lopsided, and not entirely viewable, I know, but if it's my character, Imma be the one to draw 'em.

* * *

Disclaimer:

 _Steven Universe_ and all other referential materials found in this story do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners and subsidiaries, and I claim no ownership of them.


	5. Debate

_Wrong nor Right_

Chapter Four: Debate

* * *

But who is truly the victor?

* * *

The thing awoke first to he sensation of sore legs, then to the pounding on its ears that was the shouting going on outside of the room. The door was open, allowing light from both the sun and the various light sources throughout the adjacent room to look into the otherwise dark space. It was struck with that one distinctive sensation known as dejá vù as its closed its eyes on instinct due to the sudden change in light levels.

Some amount of seconds later, its eyes had adjusted, and it opened them to behold the sight of a larger Gem – about as tall as itself, for the sake of comparison – apparently berating the two Gems that had guided it thus far. Once again prompted by a mix of instinct and forlorn maternal instinct, it just about _sprang_ into action, leaping to the defense of the smallest two in the building. The big Gem (though not quite as tall as the deformed one) took to yelling at the corrupted Gem instead.

All this shouting and confusion about _what_ and _why_ the yelling was about nearly set the malformed one off, with the only thing stopping a rampage being the timely intervention of the other two. The one apparently in charge appeared about ready to set off on another tantrum, but before this could commence, one of them began talking, cutting off the larger one before it could even start. The two promptly took turns enthusiastically saying their piece in what was evidently an argument for the corrupted Gem's stay. A rebuttal was given in turn by the more authorative Gem, and so began a back-'n'-forth between the two parties. As the conversation dragged on, the taller one began to deflate, slowly losing its steam as bits of logic extinguished its flame of chagrin. One particular comment seemed to quickly spark that flame anew, however, and it nearly exploded at the two in response. The smaller ones cowered, words dying at their lips as they shrank away from the bigger one's anger.

The corrupted one didn't nearly understand what was going on to a degree that could be considered decent, yet it rushed to their aid a second time, getting behind them (knocking a few things from their respective places in the process) and more or less hissing at the more rotund Gem. The figure of authority was again put off by this strewing-about of its possessions, but its focus was realigned by the resuming of the chatter of the small Gems. This time, they spoke in quieter, calmer voices, as to A) not cause a violent reaction in the corrupted Gem that has surprisingly not occurred yet, and B) to solve this problem by appealing to logic rather than passionate emotion, as that hasn't exactly been working to their favor thus far.

At the very least, the goal of promoting peace was achieved. The lowered volume made both of the larger Gems lose some of the tension they had been building up, though some still clearly remained.

A brief glare was shared between them before the evident leader loudly exhaled, near-collapsing onto the nearby chair. Its next sentence left its mouth in a tired tone of voice; the meaning of the words again escaped the unfortunate Gem's grasp, it could still get the tiredness it had because of this whole debacle. It let out the best apologetic grunt that it could manage, though it could really only try so hard. A grunt from an animal in a different pitch is still a grunt from from an animal, so not much could be discerned by the other three as a result.

' _Wait and stay_ ,' said the next instructing gesture to the Gem, much to its irritance. It had had enough of waiting around, and it didn't like the sensation of being treated like someone's _pet_. It stormed up the stairs in a grumpy, defiant, borderline _childish_ fashion, back slouched over a bit and grumbling lowly as it struggled to find and maintain its footing.

Its two guides promptly rushed up behind it to stop it from causing any sort of havoc, but succeeded only in causing all three of them to tumble down the stairwell as they made the mistake of attempting to stop it via force of hand and arm. They had almost ironically made a mess of themselves rather than the house, and even _that_ ended up being a bit slow on the upkeep, what with the mess already made on the bottom floor.

Enter: Sigh Version II from the bigger one. It got up sluggishly to help undo the tangled of limbs the three had managed to knot themselves into. Through some miracle, no one ended up on the pointy end of the corrupted one's joust-like limbs, though a couple of nicks were still to be had here 'n' there.

One untangling later, the four were seated, with the three not-deformed ones sitting on various chairs about the room. The odd on out, meanwhile, was ordered via pointing to sit on the carpeted ground. However plush said carpet may have been, though, it was still discontented to be forced to sit and heel like a _mutt_.

So it was that the Gem had disobeyed orders yet again and seated itself, much to its own discomfort (it was a chair very clearly made for one of a smaller size) and to the chagrin of the not-quite-as-tall Gem. It muttered a few words under its breath before resuming talking with the two others, this time in a calmer tone for previously stated reasons.

The pair evidently had no words for this, lowering their heads in apparent recognition of the other's remark. Some minutes passed in somewhat strained silence, waiting for… _something_. The corrupted Gem had no idea what, nor could it really venture a logical guess

A few of its would-be guesses would have been proven correct with the arrival of another Gem, this one of a more muscular and grown figure than the other three yet still the most feminine -looking. Panting lightly from exertion from what was evidently work that it had just finished, it went straight through a door hole and into another room. The sound of running water ensued.

The other three looked a bit shocked to have the elephant in the room ignored in such a way. The bigger Gem rushed into the other room and _again_ near-yelled at he other one. The loudest sigh yet could and would be heard, and the two entered back into the foyer-equivalent.

The newly entered Gem took to gazing at the malformed one, surprisingly not appearing at all weary or even _startled_ at its being inside of their abode. An exhale, not _quite_ a sigh, left its closed mouth. The moment it finished the sentence after that, the two little ones made their sales pitch, taking turns gesticulating and shouting with an amount of energy that could best be branded as "wild." The listener nodded, managing to not catch their admittedly infectious enthusiasm (the largest one present had since gotten out of its chair, both due to this and the discomfort it had been having in spite of the lack of muscles and/or bones).

After they had taken their turn, the seated Gem said its part, getting up mid-way through so that it could really get face-to-face with its housemate. It gestured to the Gem of discussion here and there, frequently glaring during those instances, which were returned in kind. A growl along with those ended up being barely restrained as well; it could vaguely understand that the two that it was closer to were arguing in its favor, so showing aggression would probably not help their cause.

After both parties had said their piece, the listener turned and exited the room, likely to think about its final call on the matter. Angst was to be had on both sides as they waited, the time seeming to elapse at a snail's pace.

Finally, after what seemed like forever but was really only about three minutes, the judge emerged and casted its verdict. The reaction was to be mixed by default because of the split-party system; the more rotund Gem took the lil' loss quite smoothly, only huffing in aggravation, while its opponents literally jumped for joy.

A pointed finger directed at the corrupted one silenced the two little ones, however. Another sentence later, and they appeared a bit downtrodden, yet still overall cheerful. A momentary glance was shared between the judge and the corrupted before a "follow me" signal was given. It looked towards the two it has known the longest for guidance, and they pointed out the door as the decision-maker left.

One last stare was given at the small pair as the corrupted Gem reluctantly followed suite, leaving to do whatever had been decided of it.

* * *

 _Author_ ' _s Note_ :

 _So_. How's some more _blepping_ sound to y'all right about now? Sounds good to me, at least. Moving on from that silliness, however; I've some folks to highlight.

First and foremost is TheOne16th, with a Follow and, more importantly, the most in-depth Review I've gotten on any story as of yet. Seriously, thanks much for bothering to invest the time to write such a lengthy and informal thing for such a relatively short story, at least by this point. I will keep "less wordy, less lengthy, less meta, and simplicity first" in mind as I continue to write this. And being starstruck by _my_ writing to the point of being distracted from the story itself is about as gleeful to me as it is disconcerting. So, thanks again for bringing this advice to light, and again for good measure. Let's see if I can't wrest a Favorite out of you as well…

Also notable is Vj1109 for the ol' refreshing Favorite-Follow one-two combo. Many thanks.

* * *

Disclaimer:

 _Steven Universe_ and all other referential materials found in this story do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners and subsidiaries, and I claim no ownership of them.


	6. Labor

_Wrong nor Right_

Chapter Five: Labor

* * *

Ah, usefulness...

* * *

Cue music – _Fire Emblem Fates_ soundtrack – _Quiet Burn_

* * *

It wasn't that long after the end of the previous chapter when the scene of our main character tending to the farm fields developed itself. There wasn't really much to say on this matter: the other Gem, after entering a pensive silence for some moments, started carving up lines in the soil with a tiller. A point to the ground was given, as if the other Gem thought that the corrupted one knew what to do from this alone.

Too generous an assumption, that. Again, the malformed Gem was really only slightly more than the usual animal in mental sum, so asking it to infer to such a degree was ultimately a waste of time. The other one took a bit of time to realize this, sighing, taking a hand and slapping it on its face when the epiphany came.

The corrupted Gem's new guide, with _zero_ fear on its features, physically took the tools of destruction that were its arms and melded them instead into far more mundane items. With just the right kind of balance between rough and gentle, it dug those lance-esque arms into the ground and began dragging them along, forming neat lines in the dirt. It kept up its guidance until a full line from one end of the field to the other was formed.

The guide speed-walked its way down the line, looking at the crease in the earth with a critical eye before going back to the other Gem and near-pushing it a small distance away. It pointed to the ground it had just hollowed, then to the ground in front of it, then gave it a gentle shove forward, an expectant look on its face.

 _Now_ it understood, poking at the dirt a bit before stabbing in deeply. It then started dragging a limb along, and got to work on cultivating the somewhat massive patch of ground.

Time passed without the Gem even knowing, as it was distracted by the pleasant sensation of feeling _useful_. If it meant feeling this way for as long as it wished, then it would gladly work for as long as it could.

And that it did, as a matter of fact. The near-simmering heat wasn't a particularly large issue, what with its physiology, but that same morphed form that only recently emerged from the ground caused it to tire quickly. It was forced to take breaks several times for the sake of maintaining its construct, and even after the first break a while in its movements were noticeably slower.

A couple of hours had passed when it flopped down front-first onto the dirt, its task complete. The expansive field now resembled something like a circuit board, what with the numerous, closely proximated lines dotting it.

Unbeknownst to the corrupted Gem was the fact that its tutor had headed inside mid-way through and taken to observing it and its work. Shortly after the flop happened, it ventured out and grabbed its nigh-unconscious form by the armpits, unceremoniously dragging its limp legs across the dirt and towards the door.

The tired Gem let out another grunt as it once again flopped down, with the impact being a bit harder this time because of the hard wooden surface. Its prior escort didn't appear to care for the pain it caused, or, if it _did_ refused to show it. It gave a shout, and soon two of the three other that the corrupted one was familiar with came along.

Some words of a higher pitch than usual left the guide's mouth, and the smaller one responded in turn a bit sheepishly. _Le sigh_ ensued, along with a pinch of the nose. A command was then given, and the smallest one present hastened out the door. The apparent head of the Gems sat itself down with a loud "oomph." The malformed one followed suite, again crunching itself up to sit on that one seat that was far too small for it.

Some time passed, during which the corrupted Gem ended up being more or less forced out of its position by the apparent leader. It took to gently scolding the corrupted Gem as it pointed towards the chair, a frown marring its features. A glance backward revealed what the harsh tone was about; the chair's wood had _somehow_ bent a bit rather than broken altogether, damaging the thing.

A guilty look down was prompted, as well as a low grumble.

Here comes a train of thought:

 _stupidstupidstupidhownotnoticeidiotletdowndefective_

Needless to say, it was now in a bad mood, and bad moods tend to result in disobedience, even in a psuedo-animal like the deformed Gem. It got up and stormed out the door, regardless of the stern, halting hand was placed on its shoulder. It shook the appendage off and left, going out into the open town just as the sun began to descend over the horizon.

Many, many pairs of eyes gazed upon it with a myriad of reactions. Shock was he most common, followed closely by fear, then curiosity a metaphorical distance away.

Surprisingly, there was far more inaction than there was of its inverse. Fear was the primary cause of this, of course, but fear of what? That it would lash out and deal harm? That it would run away, causing a scene and spoiling one's reputation for causing it? Or possibly even of this unknown monster in general, and of what it could do?

Regardless, no one stepped forth even as it reached he edge of the main street, finding a small alcove in the structure of the backside of the largest building in the settlement.

It just laid there, feelin' like trash minute after minute, until a small crowd consisted mostly of the Gems from before had formed and followed it. The group crossed the corner leading to its resting spot none too cautiously, with one particularly brave soul drawing quite close. The corrupted one glanced up when it noticed the change in lighting, and seeing that weary face so close to itself didn't serve to raise its mood in the slightest. It did the opposite, in fact, with a drawn-out growl prompting a retreat from that one that drew close.

For every step back that it took, the malformed Gem took another step and a half forward, until their faces were near-touching.

The Gem that wasn't corrupted couldn't help but notice the small specks of liquid in the corners of those bright amber eyes, and a trace of sympathy entered it. It remained as still as possible in spite of this, however, as to not cause a violent reaction from the wronged one.

The pair remained as such for a few seconds, the tension rapidly building in the deformed Gem, until a shout caused everyone present to snap out of their tension-fueled reverie. The crowd all looked towards the source of the voice, finding that familiar pair of rather small Gems sprinting towards the scene.

The growl that had been steadily growing in volume was silenced the moment the thing noticed the two's approach. Some of the tension left as well, but not nearly all of it.

The two approached with practically zero fear, at least on the surface. If worry could be called a version of fear, then _that_ was at least present in part. The short, more brave of the two jammed itself between the would-be adversaries, clearly with the intent of putting an end to his confrontation in mind.

A small shouting contest ensued, with the little one putting its disproportionately loud voice to use more than its taller opponent. It took some minutes and much wild gesturing later for the taller Gem to sigh, throwing up its arms in defeat. Some instructions were doled out by said Gem, and the crowd slowly dispersed, though not without many vaguely weary glances being shot the corrupted Gem's way. It didn't really notice those looks, and by extension didn't care.

With no small amount of reluctance, it followed the smaller Gems back to their abode.

Some minutes passed in terse silence inside the house before the head Gem emerged from the room that the corrupted one had slept in the previous night, panting mildly from whatever tasks it had been doing. It leaned against the doorway, gesturing inside for the malformed Gem to take a look-see. It followed he given instructions, though yet _again_ with a degree of hesitance.

The sight wasn't anything spectacular by any means, but if one were to consider how the room was laid out relative to how it was the previous night, a bit of positive appraisal ought to be given. Rather than concrete, a carpet – however short it was of a good thread count – was now what the floor consisted of. Furthermore, a small blanket-pillow combo had been put in the center of the room.

It promptly felt around, noting the soft carpet and even comfier items of sleep before its bodily weariness made itself known again. It swiftly laid itself down on its side, letting out a cross between a sigh and a purr as it instinctually curled in on itself for comfort's sake. It fell asleep in a matter of minutes, much to the chagrin of the head of the house. This distaste for its swift commute to dreamland was quickly doused, however, when it realized that it didn't really matter. If it couldn't understand whatever left its mouth, than it didn't matter if the corruption was present or not, did it?

So it was decided that the malformed Gem was to stay as a helper, at least for the time being. This announcement caused the smallest Gems to jump for joy, while the more rotund one simply sighed, resigned to this risky path that had been chosen.

And how risky it will prove to be, in even more ways than they would initially think…

* * *

 _Author_ ' _s Note_ :

 _Blep blep blep_.

… Moving on. No people to shout out, but that's not _too_ surprising for various reasons. And apologies for this chapter _alone_ taking so long; laziness and me getting into _Dark Souls III_ are the biggest causes for this delay. With any luck, the next won't take nearly as long.

* * *

Disclaimer:

 _Steven Universe_ and all other referential materials found in this story do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners and subsidiaries, and I claim no ownership of them.


	7. Work Hog

_Wrong nor Right_

Chapter Six: Work Hog

* * *

The curse of duty is a mighty one.

* * *

Cue music – _Fire Emblem Fates_ soundtrack – _Road Taken_

* * *

The night passed without incident. No torch/pitchfork-wielding mobs, no plot-implying dreams, no nothin'. Just a peaceful, if not slightly tense, night all around.

The morning, however, was notable, if only because of the sluggish atmosphere. Everyone got up at least half an hour later than their usual time. Perhaps it was because all of the stress and suspense made everyone that it more tired than usual?

Regardless, everyone got up eventually, including the Corruption by way of some rough prodding from the apparent matriarch. It grumbled and mumbled something unintelligible beneath its breath as it awkwardly shifted and got up, its forelimbs clanging loudly against the inner workings of the house. The other Gem didn't appear to mind waiting, thankfully. If anything, it was grateful for its getting up in a matter of seconds rather than minutes, unlike all of the other saps in its house.

The two tallest ones of the household sat around, waiting, though this time the malformed Gem took to sitting on the floor instead of the now-bent chair. It still didn't feel all that good over that little accident, though its negativity wasn't quite so large as to yield any outer signs of distress.

Some amount of minutes transpired before everyone made themselves present, some looking more tired than others. A yawn or two was given as the evident leader doled out orders, not appearing tired in the least. On noticing the smaller two Gems beginning to nod off, it shouted and began speaking like some sort of cliché drill sergeant, its nigh-doubled volume working wonders as getting everyone truly awake.

A couple of minutes passed before the three others left. Again, that vague sense of protectiveness made itself known to the deformed Gem, and it almost wanted to follow the two small ones out of the door. Just in case, and such.

It resisted the urge, however, and after the guiding Gem gulped down some black-brown substance (the corrupted Gem quirked both brows at this unfamiliar practice), it was escorted outside again for some more work in the fields.

A shack was opened in the side of the house, revealing all manner of miscellaneous contents. The leader paced over to a large box in the corner and pried it open with a grunt. Inside, there were a bunch of moderately sized, oddly shaped pellets of an earthly color. It retrieved as many as it could manage, using both arms and stabilizing the top of the pile it had created with its chin.

It left the shack, the corrupted Gem following on reflex by this point. Once it got near the crop, it let all of the strange pellets fall onto the ground without even bothering to be careful about it. It then picked up a couple, plopping one in the lines of dirt created yesterday. It gauged a certain distance between its fingers with a squinted eye, plopping down one and then another once it deemed this distance good.

The deformed one watched as it gestured with both arms, creating a gap between them. It understood what to do, walking over to the pile, struggling and failing a few times to get even one secured in its cumbersome limbs. With a bit of help from its more-or-less mentor, it crossed its arms and leaned a small pile of the things against its chest, preventing them from falling.

It took to putting the pods where instructed while the guide went back to the house. This time, the leader grabbed a few large containers and plopped them down next to one of the house's walls. A faucet was opened, and water promptly began to pour out, filling the first basin in just under a minute. It repeated he process for the other, similarly sized pails, totaling up to six. The instructor again gestured the other Gem over, but it was too caught up in its work and the sensations resulting from it to notice this.

The mentor sighed, heaving up the filled container with a grunt and hobbling over to draw its attention. This action succeeded in its intent, and it looked over, curious. The guide took to pouring a moderate amount of water on each of the deposited pods, just enough for a small amount of water to pool around each one.

The corrupted Gem actually managed a _nod of understanding_ , knowing what it wanted to be done after its aid gave a grandiose wave about the whole crop.

Time flowed without notice from the malformed Gem, much like the previous day. This time, it went through its entire "shift," as it were, without needing a break, the rest from the previous night and the fact that it had "matured" into its form that bit more helping with this.

Time was not the only thing that went unnoticed by the malformed one. This _was_ a town it was working in, after all, and the not-so-little fiasco from last night had obviously made it an object of gossip and attention from the locals. Naturally, people flocked like tourists to the crop that it was working on as a result. It was like a zoo filled with exotic animals, with it being the main/sole attraction.

One Gem even had the audacity to try and feed the psuedo-beast by chucking a lump of assorted foods at it when it stopped to catch its breath for a few seconds. This didn't really do anything besides irritate the thing, as it wasn't really familiar with the concept of eating in any sort of way. It simply stabbed he various foodstuffs one by one and tossed them back out of the fenced area. One well-aimed, surprisingly fast toss managed to smack the offender upside the head, much to the amusement of those around it. This bemusement was quickly dashed with a loud, menacing growl, as well as a glare from the leading Gem, causing the small crowd that had since assembled to scatter.

The thing promptly got back to work, snorting uncaringly at the crowd as they slowly left. The water pails it got to after all of the pods were put in place, and it initially struggled with the things. It managed to work out a solution by itself, however, working its weaponized arms under the arcing handle and lifting up, making it drop to the crook that was the pit of its joint. Though straining on its arms, it was rewarded with the satisfaction of a seemingly challenging problem being solved all on its lonesome, as well as a stable and consistent way to get its job done.

Just over an hour had transpired by the time its task was done. It wasn't tired to the point of flopping over, though it was certainly getting there. The instructor promptly exited the abode and gave the thing a few appreciative pats on the shoulder.

It guided the Corruption back into the house, setting it down on a chair that was thankfully larger and more plush than the previous victim of a chair. The thing wheezed out a sigh as it collapsed against the chair, not used to or expecting the sudden rush of comfort. The mentor left after a minute or so afterwards, observing the Gem in a sort of curious way before leaving.

* * *

It didn't even realize that it had dozed off until the door near-slamming shut made it jolt to wakefulness. Unbeknownst to it was the fact that, during its two-odd hours of sleep, the other Gem had covered up the holes that it had made with soil, making was for a solid crop later down the road. Perhaps more importantly, however, was the fact that a small crowd had gathered outside. It could hear the many facets of conversing voices even from inside, which gave it a faint sense of both nervousness and dejá vù.

The four other inhabitants of the house were all gazing at the corrupted Gem expectedly. The leader urged it to its feet with a few hurried gestures, and it exited the dwelling via the main entrance, followed closely by the other four.

The nerves that had already been strained were pushed that bit more by the sensation of dozens of pairs of eyes suddenly paying attention to the malformed one. The leader took a position beside it, and it began to make a statement. Its loud, absolutely certain voice brooked no argument, through when it had to stop every now and again to think about what to say next the crowd began murmuring. It quieted as a whole once its little speech started up again, and so began a cycle the lasted a good number of minutes.

The deformed Gem only grew more and more angsty as the talk went on, even as the group of folks got to the point of paying more attention to the speaker rather than the more physically outstanding of the two. Just as it was about to push past its companions and storm back inside, one particularly loud and confidence-infused statement, as well as the stomping of a boot-covered foot, made the crowd disperse, just like earlier on (just with less throwing stuff around).

Some last-second glances were tossed at the Corruption before not a one remained, and everyone left present sighed, with the exception of the corrupted one, who instead let out a sort-of-equivalent with a huff. The five stood around in silence for a few seconds before the rotund one gave an exclamation of approval for the job well done. The receiver of this credit just shook its head, not appearing enthused. This brought down the mood, and a second sigh wormed its way out of its lungs.

The group headed back inside, with everyone seating themselves at various spots across the two main rooms of the first floor. The somewhat chubby one grabbed a nearby rectangular object with an assortment of buttons on it and, after pushing one in the corner, turned the nearby screen on.

The corrupted Gem's first instinct upon seeing the thing flash on was weariness. Had some other Gems managed to sneak into the house and were suddenly causing a ruckus? But this feeling was swiftly replaced in part by fascination as it observed the animated characters moving and talking on the moderately sized box in the corner.

A small part of it felt like it should recognize this sort of technology by default, but it didn't. That odd sensation of wrongness once and again came upon it, but the almighty distracting presence of the screen soon blocked out this unpleasantness. Such is the power of idle entertainment, yes?

The group effectively sat there and relaxed for a good while, just basking in the leisurely atmosphere, until the Corruption was taken by another, different sensation from before. Idleness didn't run in its Gemetics, it would seem, for it grew angsty. That want/need for productivity won out in time, and it eventually got up and started prowling around impatiently, no longer content with its laziness.

An addiction to that pleasant feeling after a job well done had been planted in it, and despite the slight tiredness of its body, it was not quite done with feeling accomplished for the day.

The other four looked between themselves, not appearing quite certain about what it was pacing around for, until it walked out to the fields and began poking at the patches of dirt that it had grown oh-so familiar with. The head a' the house promptly took the thing back inside once it had managed to put one and one together. As for what it would do with the resultant two? It guided the thing out the front door and onto the towns central street, walking for a couple of minutes before arriving in front of the large building that it had hidden behind the night previous.

A looming wooden structure was in the center of what was clearly a sort of town square, and the guide rang the bell that hung under its top with a couple of tugs at the adjacent string.

At the tolling of the bell, many a Gem – some familiar from the crowd a relatively short time ago and some not – began gathering around, the mixture of curious and weary expressions almost appearing normal by this point.

A clearing of the throat was given to silence the murmuring gathering before the mentor started its second speech in one day; the highest in quite a while, and more than it really wanted (which is to say, no announcements at all) by its records and standards. Again, its tone was authorative and begged no argument, though as its spiel drew to a close it grew more quiet and inquisitive. A couple of seconds passed before someone raised a hand and gave a short declaration of its own. Everyone else seemed shocked at this apparent act of bravery, while the speech-giver simply remained stoic and nodded after a second or two.

It took the deformed one's right limb and gently guided it over to the hand-raiser, the crowd promptly moving aside for the pair as they approached. Each party gave the other a once-over before the leader gave the Corruption a gentle push towards the other. It stepped back as the malformed Gem gave it an uncertain glance. It simply pointed to the other Gem in response, and with a calm "follow me: gesture from the latter, the corrupted one reluctantly followed it to… well, _wherever_ the next destination for it was to be.

Labor was a certainty, however, and with labor comes the satisfaction of completing it…

* * *

 _Author_ ' _s Note_ :

 _Bleppity bloop_. Soundin' like a fish with the world's loudest voice over here. How about you folks? You expressing yourselves enough? I ask that question of myself a lot. Being the jester may as well be in my blood, after all.

For shout-outs, we have… no-one again. Eh. Best to give this time and more words to attract folks with. I'm not going to go asking for attention like some trope-y YouTuber, not yet at least.

... Ah, yes, and not to be confused with Roadhog.

* * *

Disclaimer:

 _Steven Universe_ and all other referential materials found in this story do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners and subsidiaries, and I claim no ownership of them.


	8. Overestimate

_Wrong nor Right_

Chapter Seven: Overestimate

* * *

The act of toil is the act of a tool.

* * *

Before it even knew it, the corrupted Gem had taken to work on another crop. After some instructions, which were luckily not too dissimilar to the ones from earlier, it worked and worked and worked until it couldn't work no more, this time flopping back-first onto the dirt rather than front-first.

A couple of minutes were spent by it simply lying there, catching its breath, panting like a dog trying to let out bodily heat. The psuedo-animal was interrupted in its rest firstly by the glare of the sun being interrupted by figure in its way, and secondly by a gentle shove from the replacement guide via a boot-covered foot. It gestured around the field, and the deformed Gem noted all of the tasks it had yet to complete. Lining the crop had already been accomplished, but the placement of the seeds (quite a bit smaller from those of its previous work session, it noted) was barely even half-way done. The watering and re-covering of the soil, by extension, had not even begun yet.

It groggily and sluggishly got up with a strained grunt, not even remotely recovered by its resting, willing but not quite able to get its job done.

 _hmmmcomeoncomeonnothardworkworkworkproveyourselfyesyesyeshurmmm_

Such was its thought process as it worked itself to the non-existent bone, falling to its knees as its body truly began to give out from the stress nary half an hour later. Sweat inexplicably poured from all over its body, in spite of the lack of glands to do so, and its hair was a matted mess that clung to its back and face as a result.

A prompt return and prodding from the other Gem had it rising again, struggling mightily to do even this. The substitute guide barely even closed the door while heading back inside before the Corrupted legitimately _collapsed_ , wheezing like many an untrained person would by this point given similar circumstances.

As it was, it was trying fairly hard to not simply retreat into its core. Failure was _not_ an option in its eyes.

 _patheticdefectivefailuregetupproveyourselfdoNOTfailagainorelse_ …

…

Or else _what_? It didn't know the answer. It wasn't even aware of the tears that started to trail from its eyes as it pondered this, the proper knowledge yet escaping it. The replacement mentor was of course swift in getting back outside and crouching down to investigate what the problem was. It didn't really know what to make of the tears, though it was clear as the sun hanging overhead that it couldn't work anymore. It left with all due speed to fetch its _real_ companions, leaving the poor thing to wallow in its misery and exhaustion.

Quarter of an hour later, all of the tears had dried up, but its emotions were still running on overdrive, trying oh-so desperately to grasp that reason and memory that was so important to it. It was attempting the impossible in its current state, however, and whatever it was trying to recollect continually escaped it.

Despair gave way to frustration once the thing realized the futility of its efforts, and with frustration arrived anger. A lack of sense of logic and restraint prompted a short-lived rampage, the energy gained from its emotional spike giving it enough time to undo a chunk of its own work. The earth was upheaved haphazardly, new and ultimately undesired lines created by its limbs.

It collapsed in short order for the fourth time, for its body couldn't sustain itself any longer, and this time around its form went up in smoke as it crashed to the ground. The little pebble, not even an actual precious metal or some such, went _plunk_ against the ground.

* * *

Cue music – _Steven Universe_ soundtrack – _Atop the Sea Spire_

* * *

It was not aware of the desperate calling of the two little Gems.

It was not aware of being picked and examined curiously and closely.

It was not aware of being taken home and put on the pillow in its shack of a room.

It wasn't aware of _anything_ until it reformed several days later in the wee hours of the morning, near-blinding light condensing into a vaguely normal-looking shape before shifting into its previous, "regular" form. It glanced around wildly, hair whipping to and fro for several seconds before recollection as to _where_ and _how_ it was struck it.

Refreshed by its more-or-less involuntary slumber, the Gem slowly poked the door to its room open. It was shocked to see its two smaller compatriots huttled against each other, backs to the door, quietly snoozing with a singular blanket over the both of them.

It recognized why these two were here after several seconds of slow-paced thinking.

The sight nearly brought tears to its eyes a second time in succession.

An indescribable sensation, sort of akin to a deep appreciation, took a place deep in its heart, and as the feeling began to pan out and expand, as it recognized that some Gems still and truly _cared for it_ in spite of its defective state, its appearance soon began to undergo a _shift_.

It was not the biggest change in the world, all things told. A lost spike or skin spot here and there, slightly more in-control hair, a less slouched over back. But _any_ step towards undoing the damage dealt by the cursed song, however small, is still a major one.

It groaned in discomfort, but not quite pain (it felt kind of good, actually) during the process, waking the two little Gems, who gaped at the process that was happening before them once they realized what was happening.

Some seconds later, it was on the floor, its grunting lasting a couple of seconds longer, at the end of which it collapsed. It ought to be said that the grunts sounded progressively less animalistic as the transformation went on, though when it let out a strange mumble after the fact it still sounded loosely like a dog/lion thing growling.

The two rushed to the thing's aid as it tried and failed to stand, making a pair of small holes as it stabbed into the floor to help itself up. The Corruption was quite feel-goodsy because of all of this positive attention it was receiving, but it was not profound enough to result in a second corruption reversal seconds earlier.

It glanced at the two little Gems, hair now short enough to makes it practically possible to see. Its pink eyes portrayed a good deal more intelligence than before, though it was still hardly fit to say something like a complete sentence. It _was_ intelligent enough to know that a hug would be the best show of appreciation it could give, however, and that is just what it did.

Mentally, now that it had rested up and was feeling more sure of itself, it once again internally asked in a primitive sort of way:

' _What now_?'

To answer the above question:

Being that this not-so-little event was during the wee hours of the morning, the two smaller Gems were quite tired. With the larger Gem still being supported betwixt them, they quietly shuffled about, plopping down on the floor they were just sitting on a short while ago and awkwardly attempting to arrange the blanket to cover all three of their bodies.

This proved more difficult than initially anticipated; it covered the pair easily enough, but the larger body of the third was a struggle to fit under. After cramming together a bit, however, the challenge was surmounted, and after arranging the weaponized limbs such that they weren't going to stab them in their sleep, they ran off to Dreamland.

The one in the middle wasn't feeling particularly tired, but decided to follow suite regardless, closing its eyes, leaning against the wall and relaxing its form and embracing the warmth of the blanket and the bodies around it.

Sleeping with others was quite nice, it subconsciously decided as it held the two as close as it safely could.

* * *

 _Author_ ' _s Note_ :

How's about I mix it up with a lil' _WRYYYYY_? Hummm… Nah, _Jojo_ references just don't feel right… Too easy, maybe. Either way…

Shout-outs? Glad I asked. Here be… still no one. Mayhaps I should change up the summary, or make the title image _actually viewable_. Either way, I shall be forced to start taking not-so-drastic measures starting next chapter. Attention is hardly my primary intent, but having some helps to give me motivation (and pressure) to write.

* * *

Disclaimer:

 _Steven Universe_ and all other referential materials found in this story do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners and subsidiaries, and I claim no ownership of them.


	9. Passing Times

Hey-uh. I'm curious about what you all feel about my story, so if you want leave me some praise and/or criticisms in a Review. Or Follow or Favorite this here funk. Or you can not do any of that. Either way, do enjoy this chapter 'n' have a good day 'n' stuff.

* * *

 _Wrong nor Right_

Chapter Eight: Passing Times

* * *

How quaint.

* * *

Good, bad, and ultimately strange, inexplicable dreams followed in the thing's sleep, dreams of a life that wasn't really its. Flashes of white, yellow, blue, and pink all gave it a mixed bag of wildly varying emotions. Fear and awe and joy and contentment all wrestled for control, with one only winning out for some brief moments before the next took over.

This emotional exhaustion was perhaps why it woke so sluggishly, in spite of almost immediately becoming aware of the four sets of eyes on it. Its head slowly tilted around to look back at each one in turn, finally resting on the small pair of Gems right beside it before the leader of the place broke the silence with a grunt, causing its gaze to return to it.

' _Rise_ ,' dictated a gesture. It got up almost as slowly as it awoke, poking another pair of holes in the floor as it righted itself. The local matriarch eyed said holes in mild distaste before leaving through the door for the _nth_ time. It followed after leaning against the wall for a couple of seconds to get the strength back in its legs, used to this procedure by this point.

It went through town the same way as the last excursion, aware but not really fazed by the eyes following it as they went. The trip from Point A (the house) to Point B (the bell tower/small manor) took that bit less time with every repetition, though the tacked-on time from Point B to Point C (the working area/house from the previous chapter) more than made up for this time save.

 _Knock knock_ went the door as the mentor rapped it somewhat heavily. It took a brief while for a Gem – the same one from the time previous, as a matter of fact – to emerge and take stock of the two Gems from before being there, in front of its home.

Several seconds of rapidly growing awkwardness passed in silence before the Corruption's closer acquaintance cleared its throat, finally prompting a conversation. The malformed one took to listening, its higher-than-before intelligence level making it able to pick out a few often-used words and inflections. It made the best possible mental checklist of these things, though with its still-stinted mind that wasn't saying a whole lot.

It jumped a bit in surprise when a hand touched its shoulder, too deep in thought to see the motion coming. Its guide pointed to the crop – still partially ruined thanks to its rampage – then back to the one that it had wronged. A grunt and a slight bow of apology was given, though it was literally _shrugged_ _off_ by the other Gem.

A few more exchanged words were given before the door was closed, ending the interaction. The pair lingered for some moments before moving back to the center of town.

* * *

Cue music – _Pokémon Omega Ruby Version_ and _Pokémon Alpha Sapphire Version_ soundtrack – _Route 101_

* * *

The bell rung, and the crowd gathered. Another speech was given, and another hand, raised. This time around, a more feminine-looking one approached. The corrupted one didn't need to be told twice about what was about to ensue, and it headed off with the Gem that volunteered to give it the chance to go to work.

Even with its "higher" state of being, it would seem that that addiction to fulfillment still dictated what it wanted to do.

"More of the same" would be the phrase that best describes the next few hours for the malformed Gem, toiling away at the plants and soil like yesterday. It was presented with a few distractions midway through in the form of its two smaller companions and a glasses-wearing newcomer that was just a bit taller than them. The two that it knew eagerly leaped over the fencing and ran to its side, with the unfamiliar one observing at a distance, arms crossed and staring intensely. The stare was returned, though it was in a challenging manner rather than the analytical one that was first given. A few moments of traded stares passed until the not-so-corrupted one broke eye contact, gazing instead at the Gems near the other's legs.

They beckoned it over, inviting it for a closer look, but it shook its head, responding in what was evidently a relaxed, yet sassy tone. The pair looked disappointed at this, but thus was made up for in spades as the Corruption instead began to close the gap.

It got a bit too close for the other Gem's comfort zone, prompting a backing up on its part. The deformed one respected this, bending down slightly so that it could get a closer look at its face.

Slightly tanned toning concealing primarily peach-colored skin, green eyes, blonde hair, and an uncommonly masculine face for its race. Now that the corrupted Gem really thought about it, everyone here had those first two traits, with another chunk having a few differing hair colors and varying degrees of masculinity versus femininity.

Once this realization was reached, it promptly began to ponder on what kind of Gem this collective was supposed to be. Once and again, however, its stinted mind and out-of-reach memories prevented it from thinking on this too deeply without some headaches, though it still could not recall for the life of it what kind of Gem had this miss-matched, non-uniform sort of palette. The possibility of a large-scale defect could have been a thing, but the odds of that were miniscule save for an incompetent Kindergarten manager making a mistake.

The chances of them not being Gems at all also struck it, though this was perhaps even less likely. What sort of creature could resemble a Gem and many of its behaviors so closely and in such quantity? The odds were just astronomically small and absolutely improbable. _Then_ _again_ , they were doing a myriad of unfamiliar things. Tending the lands in such ways, making primitive buildings out of wood, Gems not doing anything productive so often, heck, _sleeping at all_? There was a startling amount of evidence for that potential claim, in retrospect.

It was so lost in this train of thought, this unexpectedly smooth flow of _intelligent thought_ , that it didn't notice the occasional splotch of skin and spike being lost. Again, this reversal of Corruption was nothing to write home about – borderline unnoticeable, really – but any step is a big one.

What the thing also didn't notice during its little thinking session was the inspection that was likewise being given by the recipient of its staring. Its eyes roamed the Corruption's body in curiosity, noting all of those strange splotches and overall unusual yet still vaguely Gem-esque form as well as the spontaneous removal of a few of its splotches. A pensive hum was given as it observed this phenomenon, with its walking over to the paired up Gems finally being the act that broke the corrupted one out of its reverie.

It just about sprang to action when it heard the sounds of gravity connectors meeting dirt a small distance away, turning its head and undoing its slouched over posture as the former receiver of its stare moved towards the other two. It said some decisive words and left, not even briefly meeting the stare directed at it for a moment before leaping over the crops fence as well as their group of there's sights.

The mere sight of its two close companions made the Corruption want to glomp 'em both, but any potential chance of this, as well as any further interaction, was squandered by the hollering of the one that had put the deformed Gem to work. This caused a reluctant farewell on both parts, though the separation would not last all that long; its work was well over halfway done by that point, and its workload was not nearly as massive as the previous instance, so getting it done as a whole did not take nearly as much time as it would have before. Its slightly more stable and strengthened form also helped with its endurance, allowing it to finish up while feeling only somewhat winded.

It poked at the door to the house a couple of times in an imitation of a knock. The host of the house promptly opened up, walking outside and inspecting the work that had been done. With a nod, it headed back inside, handing a small, semi-see-through bag with little wads of paper and a few circular metal trinkets to the Corruption before giving it a few light, gracious pats on the shoulder and closing the door.

The stinted Gem then began wandering around the town a bit, not quite feeling done with wanting to work yet. It eventually spotted a Gem going to work on a rather small field, barely as wide in either dimension as it was tall.

The thing paced over, putting the sack down nearby and making its presence known with a grunt. The other Gem, had a pair of small contraptions in its ears, making it deaf to all but the loudest of noises, making it so that the effort to be noticed was wasted. It walked closer, careful of the small yet sharp prongs of the fence surrounding the mini-garden, and let out a louder grunt. When this, too, failed, it decided to get up in the other Gem's face about it, practically shoving its face right against the other's. This, thankfully and logically, succeeded, making the Gem back up in surprise and accidentally pin itself against the rather pointy fencing, prompting a bit of painful grunting before it backed off and re-approached the malformed one.

It looked irritated at the small wounds and tears in its clothing about as much as its being distracted in such a way. It popped the audio-blaring distractions from its ears, sighing before speaking in an inquisitive tone.

The deformed Gem had no idea what this apparent question was specifically about, nor how to respond properly. So it just let out an apologetic grunt about the damage it caused before poking at the dirt and letting out a drawn-out hum.

The other Gem picked up what it was laying down with a small "ah" before shaking its head in the negative about needing (or at least wanting) help. The Corruption felt highly tempted to simply continue asking to help to the point of insistency, but decided that no meant no and backed off, retreating from the area with a short and low grumble. It would have forgotten about the sack it had just put down, but luckily it had placed the thing in a nigh-impossible to miss, out-in-the spot.

It became a pattern; putting the sack down, locating and asking the Gem of the house, being denied the chance to help, picking the sack up after nearly forgetting about it, rinse and repeat.

Its frustration slowly, steadily rose with each negative given to it. These Gems _dared_ to deny a generous, selfless offer of help!?

By the end of the tenth cycle, it had had enough, storming back to its makeshift home and kicking open the partially opened door (it was a particularly good day out, you see).

The sudden noise and intrusion both gave the rotund Gem a fright in its seat, but the apparent leader was barely fazed by this unexpected happening. With a low, drawn-out growl the deformed one approached its mentor, pointing out the window and towards the crop it be had been invested in the most.

' _You_ will _make use of me_ , or else,' was its statement.

In spite of this blatantly dangerous situation, the mentor quickly draped the "why" of this confrontation, appearing more or less nonplussed. It simply raised an eyebrow in response, as if to say, ' _Or else what_?'

Luckily for the mentor and the maintaining of its usual demeanor, however, a sudden noise outside rang out. A ruckus, it sounded like; wood being destroyed, a few odd-sounding roars, even the occasional scream or shout from a Gem or three.

With barely a moment's worth of hesitation, the three Gems of the house rushed out to investigate this sudden clamor…

* * *

 _Author_ ' _s Note_ :

Now to see if this attention-seeking strat works out… Oh, and _blip blip_.

In the now, however, we've got thanks to give to… still no one. Have patience, Seth; good things come to those who wait, after all.

* * *

Disclaimer:

 _Steven Universe_ and all other referential materials found in this story do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners and subsidiaries, and I claim no ownership of them.


	10. Kindreds

Yo, keyword to stop the music is _silence_ or any variation thereof. Felt like I ought to mention that…

* * *

 _Wrong nor Right_

Chapter Nine: Kindreds

* * *

Linked in more ways than one.

* * *

Cue music – _Pokémon Omega Ruby Version_ and _Pokémon Alpha Sapphire Version_ soundtrack – _H-Help Me_!

* * *

Being that the group was rushed 'n' all, the time that it took for them to reach the square was even less than the commute earlier that day. Nothing appeared particularly damaged at first, but the closer they got to the center of town the more the damage became apparent. Wood was strewn about, people running off in the distance could be seen, and the small tower, toppled. The bell lay on the ground a short distance away, likely cracked from the impact with the paved ground.

A large form was roaring at an obnoxious volume near the destroyed bell tower, comparatively massive upper body thundering as it pounced its chest with two _swoll_ arms. A purple, rectangular gem with off-color splotches and an unnatural protrusion or _five_ was visible where its right sternum bone would be on a human, and its form's skin reflected this in a way not too dissimilar to our own Corruption. Speaking of similarities, its hair was a mess as well, though not nearly as long and tinted a pale purple instead of blond, and its face had a massive chin cleft, completing the gorilla-esque look. A pair of tiny, malicious eyes searching for the next victim of its current rampage session could also be seen if observed closely enough.

Said victim ended up being the glasses-wearing Gem from earlier, who had taken cover inside a nearby house rather than run. It was spotted as its head poked out the window for a quick assessment of the situation, this move proving to be a mistake as the wild Corruption gave another roar and charged, breaking through the brick/concrete wall with ease and quickly cornering the comparatively tiny Gem.

In spite of not really knowing this particular Gem, the guardian Corruption gave a loud, fierce snarl, drawing its attention away long enough for the Gem to get away and out of the danger zone of the imminent battle. Its four companions also made a break for it, with the small pair being pushed along a bit before they began running off as well.

Two pairs of eyes, parallels of situation in more ways than one, locked and glared. So it stayed for several seconds, neither party moving much at all, until…

* * *

Cue music – _Mario and Luigi_ : _Browser's Inside Story_ soundtrack – _SHOWTIME_!

* * *

The not-so-friendly Corruption took the first move, tired of waiting around for the fight to come to it. It leaped forward using both of its arms, going a surprising distance vertically before crashing down like a meteor arms-first on top of the other corrupted Gem.

It managed a dodge roll, quickly stopping its momentum by stabbing into the ground, charging forward as the other Gem regained its bearings and attempting to skewer it. One limb was parried aside, and the other, tilted off-course because of the sudden jostling, only left a small scratch in its side.

This same limb was grabbed hold of and used to toss the less corrupt Gem into a nearby building, causing hundreds in collateral damage as the wall gave way to the force of the throw and, more importantly, knocking the wind out of the Corruption.

It got up from the table it had ruined with a large amount of speed, damage to its form bring considered, and sprinted back into the fight. The dust and smoke that had erupted from the damaged building concealed its movements for just long enough to take its foe by surprise, tackling it to the ground and lining its weaponized arms up for another skewering. This attempt, at least in part, proved successful, the thrust from its right limb piercing right through the arm that had been raised in an instinctual guard.

The unwelcome Gem howled in fury and pain at this, slapping the offender off of its prone form before charging in, uninjured arm raised vertically for a bashing attack. Another dodge this time, with a quick thrust to a leg as it barreled past sending it tumbling to the ground, crippled because of the wound in its leg. It had a difficult time steadying itself as it rose, finding that it had to lean on one of its arms for support instead of both. This lead to an awkward time fighting on its part; a fact which would be taken advantage of by its foe.

Now forced on the defensive, the aggressive Corruption slowly pivoted around as its slightly healed counterpart, slowly and deliberately decided on when to strike. That moment came after several stand-offish seconds, giving no warning as it went from slowly strafing with one step to leaping forward the next. An instinctual guarding arm raise proved to be its mistake as the momentum that the other Gem had suddenly gained made its pointed limb go right through its arm and out the opposite side of its torso. It'd be a gruesome scene were it not for the lack of guts and blood, to be certain.

The victorious Corruption gave its down and in-pain foe a look that sort of resembled _pity_ , hesitating for a moment or two with a shaking arm before running it through, barely avoiding damaging the Gemstone itself. A smoke cloud erupted as its hard light form dissipated, the core of its being falling to the ground with a quiet _plop_.

All went _silent_ for a short time, light panting aside. Reaching down, the last Gem standing created a bubble and contained the thing's Gemstone. Its eyes widened at its own action, barely even realizing that it had done so on instinct before giving the yellow-orange bubble a light tap, sending it off to where it defined home as being.

Several moments later, a few others arrived to the scene, curious as to how and why the noise and carnage stopped. Thankfully another confrontation was avoided because just about everyone living in the area had seen "their" Corruption a few times now, so they naturally didn't freak out. Another factoid that they knew of lay in the disappearance of their foe, which made them link said disappearance with the Corruption.

A mutual sense of gratitude was felt by the rapidly growing crowd, though none of them really felt comfortable in approaching the almost perfectly still Gem. Be it that strange lack of movement, the destruction surrounding it, or other personal fears, no one gave thanks for the job it had to do…

Except, of course, for its two small compatriots, who – be it for its being mostly okay or for the deed that it had done – gave the deformed one a hug on either lag. The act was reciprocated after a couple of seconds, and again it enjoyed basking in that sensation of being accepted and thanked in spite of its status.

Another few spots and spikes, gone.

Some time passed as such, until the Corruption spotted the apparently stoic Gem from earlier a good distance away, far from the crowd. They stared at each other for several seconds before the moderately sized Gem out a hand to its chin, nodding pensively with a slight grin before sauntering off, humming quietly to itself.

The malformed Gem grunted in curiosity at this. ' _What could that one be thinking_?' was its thought in essence. This noise broke the little touchy-feely attitude the two small ones still had going, and they reluctantly broke their respective holds on the Corruption's legs.

The deformed one quickly became aware of its being the center of attention from an uncomfortable amount of Gems, and it backed off from the two friends, having a go at shying away and lowering its head bashfully. It was even _blushing_!

How _cute_ , and how _intelligent_ a reaction.

The Corruption gently pushed its two companions to either side before rushing back home, all too eager to get away from the attention of the crowd, however positive it may have been overall. The two smallest Gems of the crowd followed suite after some seconds of confused hesitation, though their shared confound mentioned faded when they remembered that their guardian was far from the best in front of crowds.

The door to home was unfortunately closed, and attempting to twist the knob and open it was met with no success because of the way its limbs formed. It frustratedly bashed the door, just wanting to get inside, to feel at home, to feel _safe_ , 'till it opened from the inside. As it was leaning forward for another strike on the door is when it swung forward, resulting in a decking of the poor thing's face and sending it sprawling to the ground.

A pained grunt ensued, the ever-stoic features of the leader of the house coming into the Corruption's view as it leaned over. It let out a grunt of its own, though this one was vaguely apologetic as it took the other Gem by the arms and hoisted it to its feet. A third grunt resonated, this time an appreciative one from the partially healed one as it stepped indoors.

* * *

Its two companions entered about a minute later to find it slouched against a chair, breathing slowly, eyes closed in slumber once and again.

It _really_ had a thing for sleeping those hours away, yeah? Wasn't even that exhausted and it was asleep already. Guess any kind of fight like that would take a lot out of one's mental self, though…

* * *

 _Author_ ' _s Note_ :

 _Bleeeeep_.

Lessee… we've here _no one still_. Once again, _eh_. May try harder and mix things up some more for the sake of attention later, but for now everything shall remain as is.

* * *

Disclaimer:

 _Steven Universe_ and all other referential materials found in this story do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners and subsidiaries, and I claim no ownership of them.


	11. Idleness

_Wrong nor Right_

Chapter Ten: Idleness

* * *

What to do, what to do...

* * *

Cue music – _Super Mario Galaxy_ soundtrack – _A Chance to Grab a Star_ _1_

* * *

 _Blink blink blink_. Naturally, that is what eyes do, more oftenly so when waking and more so yet while under the rays of the sun. Rapid blinking thusly ensued as it woke, prompting a faster-than-average rousing. It rose from its chair with a slight groan, having fallen asleep feeling comfortable yet not being so after laying slouched over like that for hours straight. It was borderline miraculous that it hadn't just fallen out of its chair the way it had been seated, really.

Ignoring the pain in its back and the holes it had made in the carpet, the Corruption took to wandering about the house for a bit, encountering no one, unless one wished to count the locked doors. It felt the need to not make so much noise as to make the other inhabitants of the house wake up, so it tried treading lightly and on carpet and such when possible.

It was during this quiet that it really took notice of the relative lack of noise. Just the insects outside, the occasional bird, and its own nigh-silent breathing and ambiance of the inner workings of the house.

It decided that relative silence was a nice thing to have every now and then.

It paced around the house a bit more out of idleness before sitting itself down in a chair near a window, looking outside after a short while.

The stars were bright out that night, as was the waning moon. It was content simply taking in the view for a while, but eventually a small part of it began to wonder where it _really_ came from. It was created and essentially born on this planet, yes, but what of where the other Gems came from? And of…

…

A low mumble of frustration followed that last thought, a name once again just out of mental reach. It pushed that thought away and instead simply stargazed, wondering about home and any other Gems out there. Where were they, what purpose they were weaved for and for who…

Again, it felt like it ought to know this on an instinctual level, yet it didn't. It decided not to make a fuss about this, again trying not to think to hard, be it on that or much of anything.

Unbeknownst to the deformed one, a solid two hours flew by as such. Gazing at space, pondering while trying and failing to not ponder, and, perhaps most importantly, losing that bit more of its Corruption. By this point it could stand up almost perfectly straight like a normal person, and its hair, though looking like it hadn't been trimmed in _years_ , looked practically possible to have, what with the lack of spikiness. Its base form's color, a cross between a shade of peach and flat orange, also shown through more than the splotches and spikes it had.

Sweet, sweet _progress_. If only it could recognize and appreciate this… Later, hopefully.

The sun still had yet to crease over the horizon by the time it had gotten done with its not-so-little gazing session, deciding that it had had enough of _this_ and to move onto _that_. It had no clue about what _that_ was, which in part fueled its opening the door and going outdoors for the _nth_ time as of late.

After several minutes of trial and error with negotiating the door knob (there were a couple of small knacks in its aged bronze surface), the thing slowly and quietly opened the door, making a point as to not close it all the way on its way out.

It went through its usual route, straight from the house to the central plaza at a leisurely pace; the slowest it had been taken thus far, in fact.

On arrival, the Corruption looked around, noting that only a few small things were missing or at least moved about and/or organized from the scene the previous day. A few chunks of wood here and there, the small bell, and, though unnoticed by the malformed Gem, all of the glass shards, items and potentially hazardous parts of the damaged buildings that ended up being collateral were gone as well.

Dominated once again by the urge to be useful (as well as a touch of guilt), the Gem took to work pushing things aside. It had no idea where the damaged goods would ultimately end up, so it decided to group the strewn objects by their appearance. Apparent walls of the lil' manor? One corner of the square. Walling of the other damaged building? Another corner. Metals and stone? A different corner yet. The ruined bell tower? That'd stay right where it was both appearance's and organization's sake.

It took nearly three hours, but a good rest gave it energy enough to get its self-declared duty done. By the end of it all, nearly half a ton's worth of materials had been shifted around and organized to the point where it may as well have been, say, a construction or demolition site rather than the aftermath of a fierce yet short battle.

The thing plopped onto the ground with a wheeze after giving the area a final once-over, just about collapsing because of all of the hauling and shoving it had to do. After several minutes of just lying there, catching its breath and panting somewhat furiously, it rose and headed home, nearly completely satisfied with its quality of work. The "almost" is there because of the fact that all of the miniscule chunks of wood scattered about would have been practically impossible to cobble together completely; even its somewhat stinted mind could understand this.

Didn't stop it from being angsty about it, though, as it successfully ignored the impulse to go back and "truly" complete its self-proclaimed task.

It cautiously closed the door behind it, getting a bit jumpy with the amount of squeaking that it was making before heading over to that small space of the house that it could really call its own (thankfully the door didn't have a knob). This was done a bit speedily because of the aforementioned jumpiness, but the carpet again did a good enough job at hiding its subsequent noise.

The deformed Gem closed the door behind it with a small exhale of relief, preparing to arrange its covers around for sleep before noticing the gentle glow of an orange bubble handing right below the ceiling of the room.

It gazed at the bubble for a number of moments before slowly and cautiously taking it by the sides of its arms, drifting it closer so that it was situated comfortably in the Corruption's lap and not popped open as it seated itself, legs making an upside down V as it made itself comfortable.

The smooth and somewhat warm container gave it a strange sort of satisfaction and comfort as it reminisced on the events of the half-day before. A small swell of pride and self-appreciation followed, as did a soft white glow from a few spots on its skin as its corruption reverted.

It didn't quite go to sleep – it hadn't even been a _sixth_ of a day since it had last slept, nor was it tired because of, for example, a recent adrenaline high – but rather entered a sort of daydreaming/dozing off mixture of a state. It just stared at its little prize, completely relaxed and scarcely thinking, until, before it had even realized it, morning had arrived and made itself known with some raps on the door to its room…

* * *

 _Author_ ' _s Note_ :

 _Blip_ and _blep_ and _bloop_.

Well, lookie here! We got someone with time enough on their hands to drop _multiple_ Reviews, as well as a Follow 'n' favorite. Shout-outs to M. -XIII for all of the words of praise and curiosity in said Reviews. Nice to see that my choices in music aren't simply lost on the reader, as well as he reader being invested in the story like this, and, most importantly to me, that you noticed our Corruption's… _odd_ point of view. I was hoping that most would pick up on this and not just decide that I write weirdly… Your time will not be wasted; the intrigue will only continue to escalate, I assure you.

Though, is that XIII to say thirteen or _the_ thirteenth?

* * *

Disclaimer:

 _Steven Universe_ and all other referential materials found in this story do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners and subsidiaries, and I claim no ownership of them.


	12. Catalysts

_Wrong nor Right_

Chapter Eleven: Catalysts

* * *

 _Song of Healing_ was too easy a pick...

* * *

The rapping of the door is what knocked the Corruption out of its reverie, the rotund Gem peaking over the barely opened door. It stared, just a bit unnerved at the sight of that bubbled Gem, before giving the usual gesture of following. The malformed Gem gave the bubble a gentle push upwards, watching as it lightly tapped against the ceiling and staying at that level before helping itself up and exiting the room.

Once all of the inhabitants of the house were present and seated across some of the numerous seats around the entrance area, the leader took to another speaking session, talking in its charismatic and authorative tone like usual before beginning to rummage around the various cupboards. It eventually found a box, dumping a portion of its contents into a bowl. The others followed suit, doing the same with the next step the leader took, that being the addition of some white liquid substance into the bowl.

This substance combo was given to the Corruption with a spoon and bowl like everyone else had, and, about as curious as it was weary, it took in a whiff of the stuff. The wheat-colored ringlets and the white stuff certainly smelled about as strange as they looked, though considering its total time of conscious existence amounting to less than _three or four days_ , this wasn't saying exactly saying a lot.

That aside, by this point the deformed Gem knew that attempting any kind of action requiring the sort of skills a set of fingers would need would end in a clumsy failure. As a result, it instead just looked on awkwardly as the others wolfed down their shares of food. The strangeness and novelty of eating didn't help much in terms of _not_ building up this personal awkwardness. This eventually ended up being noticed by the two smaller Gems, who promptly paced over after piecing one and one together. Taking turns, they began spoon-feeding the Corruption, as if it were some freshly emerged Gem with a pair of non-functional arms.

… _oh-ho-ho wait_ _a second_.

Its embarrassment was clearly and obviously seen by everyone present, what with the blushing and averted gaze. The bemused stares were _really_ not helping, and it growled after reluctantly downing the next gulp of food. The effect was somewhat lost, however, what with its growl turning into an unusual sort of blend between a person's and an animal's. The resultant staring ended up being that bit more intense, much to the malformed Gem's chagrin.

This instance ended quickly enough, which the Corruption felt loosely thankful for. The leader, after noting the fact that everyone was done eating, walked over to the door and exited, prompting everyone else to follow, including the deformed Gem after several indecisive seconds. It didn't want to face everyone's reactions to its little deed from the previous night, however positive it almost certainly knew said reactions would be.

The malformed Gem's theory ended up being confirmed when they got to the town square, with everyone except it having expressions of mild shock on their faces. The little ones looked relieved at not having to do work, at least.

All eyes quickly and in turn rotated towards the Corruption, and it blushed and tried to hide behind its hair, using its shoulders to make its shaggy mess of a mane to cover its face. Some giggles escaped the pair of smaller Gems at this, which again didn't help with the Corruption's apparent sense of bashfulness.

A clearing of the throat made everyone turn back to the leading Gem, who approached the Corruption. It looked all the more nervous at the other Gem's slow approach, but this was quickly washed away as it gave it a couple of appreciative pats on the shoulder, as well as a couple of quiet words that the Corruption actually managed to _understand_.

"Good job."

A burst of appreciation and intelligence caused more reversion of its corruption to ensue, and by this point it looked about as normal as it did beastly. Feet that looked as if they were covered by pointy boots instead of the previous two lengthy toes, less wild hair, that bit of additional sharpness in its eyes, and the usual skin shifting include some of its changes, as well as a few other minor ones.

The leader noted this with a curious hum and a hand to its chin, wondering if, perhaps, taking this _thing (_ that was notably becoming less and less like a _thing_ by the day) was really a that bad of an idea in the first place.

With any luck, it wouldn't be.

Foreshadowing aside, its feel-goodsy mood quickly subsided, drawing its mind back down to reality as it looked around for a few seconds, still a bit absent-minded. A couple attention-drawing snaps made its attention jump to the lumpy Gem, who, knowing it wasn't comfy with crowds, pointed back down the road and to home. In spite of the lack of charisma this one had relative to the leader, the malformed Gem still followed its instructions.

It gave the two smaller Gems some words and a a couple of gentle pats on the back to get them going as well, for they would serve a better purpose with the Corruption than being present in the imminent speech.

* * *

Cue music - _Iji_ soundtrack - _Hade Shade_

* * *

And a better purpose was indeed discovered by the two smaller Gems. The Corruption was looking progressively more normal, so they figured, ' _Why not see if it can learn_?'

With the knowledge of its being a Gem in mind, they gathered upstairs in a room with a pair of somewhat small beds; judging by this detail alone, this was where the two smaller Gems called their room.

The pair presented to it a book on general geology; the formation processes of a myriad of stones, with accompanying images of lava/magma, and, most importantly, various pictures of the minerals and precious stones and such that result.

Initially the other two flipped the pages every half-minute for it, but as it grew more and more invested on this book of information and subsequent remembrance, it took over the page-turning for them. Slowly it went at first, but as time went on it went faster and faster, a quiet, pensive and drawn-out hum becoming a mild groan as this happened. Splotches went undone, hair grew shorter, and its voice, less animalistic.

Sweat began pouring down its features, eyes widening as its gentle, clumsy turning via the book's edges shifted gears into somewhat reckless hole-poking.

It was subconsciously growing desperate and despairing, searching for something, some information that it _knew_ but at the same time _didn_ ' _t_ , that was exceptionally dear to it. Pages began being torn out entirely as its desperation escalated, the groan becoming a loud moan as its scattered thoughts began to collect themselves for this singular, all-consuming task.

 _wherewherewhereiknowitsheresomewhereotherGemsareyesfinditfinditWHEREISIT_ -

Until, finally, there _it_ was.

A diamond, pure and white, in the shape as it would appear on a playing card. Holes had been torn into many areas of the page it was on by this point, yet there it remained, undamaged in the very center of the page.

All went _silent_ momentarily, the other two glancing up at the stock-still Gem after a short while in concern, until, like a dam breaking in two, its silence turned into a _scream_.

It clutched its head, the two smaller Gems violently flinching away as it doubled over in pain. Bile escaped its throat as it heaved up the food from earlier as its few remaining spots all began to come off at once and at various rates, hair shortening to the point of being manageable, and its scream turned from an animal's to something _very_ human-like. Because, _really_ , that's what these other entities _actually_ were, weren't they?

 _theywerentGemstheywerehumansyoufoolshouldhaverealizeditsooneryou DEFECT youresmarterthanthiscomeonalready IT WAS SO OBVIOUS yesindeed_ -

A beat, the screaming slowly quieting as its thoughts shifted to more pressing matters.

… _Diamondswhouldhavedonethistome_ …

Another beat.

 _yestheonlyoneswiththe AUTHORITY_ …

Beat…

 _whywouldthey do this_.

 _To me_. _To_ us.

Yet another beat as she contemplated and remembered, finally going completely silent as her projected body relaxed.

 _Rebellion_. _Yes_ …

 _But_.

 _Even then_ …

 _How many were Corrupted_?

 _Turned into some kind of deranged_ animal _like that Amethyst and I_?

A beat, and some tears.

 _No one deserves this kind of_ torture. _Not even those rebels_.

One last beat, and a conclusion was reached:

 _I hate them_.

 _Yes_...

"I hate them _so much_ …"

A _crunch_ reverberated as this, her first sentence, was spoken. Her newly formed fingers dug through the carpet and into floorboards as her thoughts turned darker, causing this noise as those emphasized words left her now-normal throat.

And then she flopped against the floor as she went unconscious ( _again_ ), mind so overwhelmed by this sudden overall shifting to the point where it decided that it needed a break from conscious thought.

What a _jolly_ way to start existing as an intelligent being. _Truly_ , what a start!

* * *

 _Author_ ' _s Note_ :

 _Brarp barp_.

Shout-outs to no one again. Let's see what this chapter yields…

* * *

Disclaimer:

 _Steven Universe_ and any other referential materials found in this story do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners and subsidiaries, and I claim no ownership of them.


	13. Restart

_Wrong nor Right_

Chapter Twelve: Restart

* * *

A sudden change in mentality means a sudden change in chapter length… Oh _boi_.

* * *

The Gem was dreaming.

Little fragments of a life that once was. Flashes of white and yellow and blue and most prominently pink. Many a great battle, some against the rebels, and some not. Images shrouded in fog or appearing as if they were beneath a sheet of water, and many a vague whisper.

 _Another one_ …

 _Don_ ' _t know what you_ ' _re doing_ …

 _You are a great warrior_ …

 _What_ ' _s the use of feeling_ …

 _Better to keep them ignorant_ …

 _An unexpected variable_ …

 _Making a mistake_ …

 _What a foolish mistake to make_ …

 _Mistake_ …

…

 _YOU WERE A MISTAKE_ , _DEFECT_ -!

And suddenly she was awake, panting desperately in spite of her lack of physical exhaustion. She calmed down quickly enough, realizing within seconds that whatever that haze of an experience was wasn't actually real.

 _Geez_ … _Not sure what that all was supposed to be_ … _And if I can_ ' _t figure that out_ , _then why continue thinking about it_?

* * *

Cue music - _The Legend of Zelda_ : _Ocarina of Time_ soundtrack _\- Inside a House_

* * *

The first thing she did was close her eyes, thinking deeply for some amount of minutes about recent events. Her memories of the time since her emergence from the ground were certainly hazy, but she tried her best to piece together her boggled memories.

 _Emerged as a Corruption_ , _which seems curious in and of itself_ … _Diamonds did that_ , somehow, _which I do_ not _appreciate_ … _Got better thanks to those humans_ … _Went unconscious instead of outright losing my form for some reason_ …

Which then prompted her to look around and take in where she was. Back in her little hovel beneath the stairs, it seemed, with the small orange bubble above her providing the only light in the room. Which _then_ prompted:

 _What does my projection look like anyways_ …?

A glance downward revealed a body covered in a primarily pink bodysuit of varying shades, being a little darker on the bottom and getting progressively lighter as it went upwards. Protrusions that resembled pointy boots with lengthy soles were present at the base of her form instead of "gravity connectors," as Gems so loved to call them. The bodysuit covered all of her body up to the base of the neck and the wrists, which revealed a skin tone that was an off-shaded, light orange. Her torso became ever so slightly wider than her hips starting at around the stomach area, with her front end being rounded off and curving inwards 'till the aforementioned stomach area, showing off her dissimilarity to a human's shape. She was relieved to discover that she now had hands, unlike in her corrupted state.

 _Ah_ , _good_. ' _l_ _east I don_ ' _t have weapons for arms anymore_ , she thought as she gave her digits an experimental stretch, squeezing them as she next thought, _Feels good to be normal again_ , _at least relatively_.

She went silent for a bit, both internally and externally, to process and experiment with her different body and sort her thoughts out for a bit. As she stood up, a slight sense of vertigo caught her off-guard, making her instinctively reach for the closest pipe to keep her balance with a surprised grunt.

 _Note_ : _Still weak_ , _be it from the recovery or something else_.

A moment later and she had recovered from her psuedo-nausea, entering her next train of thought in the process.

 _So_ , _the pink suit makes me think that I_ ' _m supposed to be one of Pink_ ' _s_ …

A blank was drawn.

 _One of Pink_ ' _s_ what? _Come on_ , _you should know this_ , _you_ ' _re programmed to by default like every other Gem out there_ …

The fact that she did _not_ , in fact, know what kind of Gem she was by default was causing her a bit of distress, but after some seconds of pensive thought she gave up on thinking about it.

 _If you don_ ' _t know_ , _then you don_ ' _t know_. _No point in crying over it_. _And besides_ , _my circumstances of emergence were_ … unique _already_ , _I think_. _Emerging vertically from the ground instead of horizontally is certainly not what Gems are supposed to be doing_ , _for various reasons_. _Here_ ' _s hoping that I haven_ ' _t emerged_ _with any_ more _defects that I_ ' _m unaware of_ … At this point she noted all of the dirt and such that had been sticking to her form. The most attention-worthy thing she observed was the feeling of dried stuff on her side, which, remembering the previous day, prompted her to add, _And that I get all of this gunk off of me_. _Ugh_ , _that_ ' _s what you get for bothering to experiment a bit_ …

The thought of her "birth," so to speak, gave the Gem a faint hint of nostalgia and a slight want to return to that place that she gestated. Her memory of those hours after her emergence were decidedly not the best, however, and as she quietly opened the door the Gem decided that she needed a guide… Or rather _two_ guides. She almost immediately noticed the two small humans, seated by the door and covered in a blanket just big enough to cover them both. It was only with the arrival of its sentience that the newly uncorrupted Gem truly appreciated the depth and dedication of these two humans' actions.

 _Let_ ' _s see if I am both remembering and assuming right_ … _These two find a_ very clearly dangerous _monster in the woods_ , _crying_ _and alone and with_ weapons for arms _and_ , _against pretty much_ all better judgement, _decide to help it take care of it_ , _probably out of pity or curiosity more than anything else_. _In spite of the dangers I posed_ , _the two people they are under decided to take me in_ , _probably because they could find a use for me_. _And that they did_ , she concluded as she recalled her time outside.

 _Still a lot of questions to be answered_ , _though_ , _particularly if they_ ' _ll still want me around now that I_ ' _m a person as opposed to some strange animal to be used_. _Wouldn_ ' _t have_ too _many problems with being forced out_ , _but considering all that these humans have done for me_...

Shoving that train of thought into the backburner (as well as the thought of going back to her emergence hole, albeit unintentionally), the Gem went back to the humans and her usefulness to them. Considering that she knew that most Gems were made with potential uses almost exclusively in mind, she felt strangely discontent at being treated like some chore animal.

 _Better hope they still won_ ' _t treat me like one_ … _Could never really tell what that leading human was thinking_. _Which begs the question of whether or not she recognized me as a Gem to begin with_. _So many unknowns_ … Another wave of discomfort (and a strange exhilaration) ensued, one that lasted for several moments. _Too many for me_ , _I think_.

After this sensation passed, she looked out the window and noted the evident time of day. The sun was just beginning to paint the horizon a shade of pink as it rose, which probably would mean that it wouldn't be _too_ long before everyone was awake and out of their rooms.

So the Gem decided to seat herself by the multi-chaired, elongated table and wait this time out patiently. One would think that being ageless would give a lot of patience to a person, but apparently not for this particular Gem. She tapped her would-be feet to an unheard beat as she waited and waited and waited.

She could do little else but look around during this period, with her eyes being drawn to an object brightly displaying "05:48 AM" on a counter nearby.

She had no idea what that thing was or why it was displaying numbers and letters like that, but kept her eyes trained on it, feeling vaguely amused as the eight switched to a nine in the blink of an eye and without a sound.

 _These humans aren_ ' _t as primitive as I would have thought_. _This thing must have an electronically or other energy-based display to change its screen instantly like that_. _How does this thing function_ , _I wonder?_

That last statement compelled her to rise and silently pace over to the thing. A generic-looking brand name was printed boldly on the top of the thing, as were a few buttons with accompanying words were present near the label. The "time" button gave way to the Gem's realization that this item was a clock, and seemingly only that.

 _With how much I slept_ , _something like this would come in handy_. _Better to just not ask to borrow it_ , _though_ ; _sleep is just a waste of time better spent elsewhere_ … _Or for the exhausted Gem that doesn_ ' _t simply want to reform_. _Either way_ , _probably won_ ' _t be needing it_ , _at least for hypothetical waking situations_ …

She did the same sort of investigation with a bunch of other devices around the room whose purpose wasn't entirely obvious spending a couple of minutes on each and occasionally tapping a few buttons and such when she thought it necessary for the sake of slaking her curiosity. The Gem didn't want to risk making any loud noises, however, and thusly kept her curiosity in check, absconding from simply touching every unknown variable in sight.

A sudden voice making itself known made the Gem jump in her non-existent boots just as she was about to push a button on what she would soon recognize as a stove.

"... Hi?"

She rounded on the source of the voice only to discover one of the smaller humans, tilting their (his? her? So hard to tell with humans sometimes) head up a good ways to look up at her as if she was the strangest thing on the planet.

"... Hi," she said back, sounding awkward herself.

An impromptu staring contest ensued for the next several seconds. The Gem lost, blinking as the small human pulled a seat over and set themselves down on it.

"..."

"..."

"... I, ah…"

A clearing of the throat, in spite of a lack of congestion.

"I don't think we've been properly introduced. I'm… someone, I guess. Definitely a Gem. Not sure what kind, but I can confirm that much."

The comparatively tiny human let out an awkward "ummm" as they thought on what to say.

"... H'm' March. Older Sis' May, over there," a point to the still-slumbering human, "still asleep. Give're a couple minutes, she'll get'p."

The human looked nervous, particularly without the immediate presence of their sibling, which is why the above sentence had all the volume of a mumble.

The Gem hummed in acknowledgement as a response, though this was after a few seconds of deciphering the little one's strange dialect. She sat down on a seat near the table instead of pulling one over.

They sat and stared for a number of seconds before the Gem asked, "Any reason you aren't just getting them up yourself?"

A solid two seconds before an answer was given; "Always grumpy when someone forces 'er. 'n' not a they; she's my Sis'."

The Gem stared, uncomprehending. "I have no idea on what that is. A "sis," I mean."

Another couple of estranged seconds. "Well… A sister is… someone else who was born 'n' made from the same people as you. Sis 'n' I," a gesture was given to help get this point across," we were both made from the same Ma' 'n' Pa'. But we turned out purtty diff'ent. May's always goin' ahead and bein' reck'ess, and Ah jus' sorta'... follow 'n' stick back 'n' dun' talk much, Ah guess. Though, even if two siblings're diff'ent 'n' fight and lotsa' other junk, they stick together through ever'thing. 'Cause they love each other lots, y'know? 'S just how it works.

"Ah mean, if May hadn't been rushin' on ahead like 'n' bein' curious about the rumors and noises in the woods like I mentioned earlier, we wouldn't'a found _you_ , yeah? And what if Ah hadn't been there to talk some sense inta her 'n' not just drive ya away like the animal she thought you were? Now that wouldn't'a been good for ya' either way, Ah think."

The Gem didn't understand what a "Ma'" or "Pa'" was, but she decided that she had better things to say than to ask about those.

"So you two share some kind of connection that makes you like each other a lot? How does that work?"

If the small human knew any less of their alien housemate, they would have thought that she was being rhetorical.

"The paps say it's something called "instinct" that does that. Not that Ah know what that is… Not yet, at least."

The primarily orange Gem just hummed in response again, still curious about this seemingly strange bond and the logic (or lack thereof) behind it, yet, acknowledging that the small one had nothing more meaningful to say on the subject, took to gazing at the other human. The one that was currently awake did the same, their patience evidently greater than the Gem's as they stood surprisingly still as they sat around, waiting for the inevitable.

They said not a single word until a number of minutes passed. The Gem figured that she may as well get the formalities and awkward emotions out of the way as soon as possible and even better yet while she was feeling comfy doing so. As such, she next said, "Thanks, by the way."

The human tilted their head to look at the Gem, uncomprehending as to where this was coming from.

"For… _fixing me_ , I suppose would be a good term for it. I legitimately couldn't have done it without you or the people that are with you, I think."

The human just blushed and grinned bashfully, hand rubbing the back of their head and turning away as they responded, "Shucks, it's what any decent person would'a done. Then again, not sure'f a "decent" person would take in something as weird 'n' dangerous as that thing you were…"

The gem thought that March was being intentionally offensive, but, after noticing the little human's grin, brushed the brewing negativity aside, chuckling lightly at the joke.

Some noises began making themselves known on the upper floor, and both persons looked up on instinct, wondering as to what specifically was happening up there.

The answer showed itself once the leading human walked down a few minutes after the noise began, looking somewhat tired but still mostly presentable. She had the same lengthy and sandy blonde hair as the two smaller humans, as well as their tanned skin, green eye color, and a couple of other minute details. The conservative amount of limb that could be seen was highly toned and reflected off some of the small amount of morning light, as if she had recently been dunked in water. The modest, beaten-up denim clothes she wore were just a bit large for her, though this still didn't stop her from _rockin_ ' that small-town country girl look.

She stared at the Gem, expression undecipherable, until she said, quite simply: "Howdy."

"... Hello."

Dejá vù came over the Gem as awkward silence once again reigned. She at least didn't feel the need to clear her throat this time as she next said, "I don't think we've been properly introduced. I am a Gem, as you may have deduced by now. Not sure what kind, though, so I suppose I'm just… nameless, at least for now. Your name?"

"... April. April Springs."

The human remained silent as she paced over and sat down on the chair opposite to the Gem's. The staring continued until the Gem next opened her mouth.

"Thank you for allowing me to stay in your abode. I know I must've been… well, _very unsafe_ to even be around, and yet you took me in anyways, which gave me the opportunity thanks to your… housemates?"

"Kids. They're mah kids," the woman said in response.

"I don't know what those are," the Gem said again, not even bothering to sugarcoat it.

The woman sighed briefly before beginning her spiel. "Suppose you wouldn't… Well, kids're made when a man and a woman get together and do some… let's say _funky stuff_ together." April's cheeks flushed ever-so-slightly at this. "Bunch a' weird and generally gross body changes happen over about nine months, an' then the kid is made. The kids themselves are, strictly speakin', half of either parent, though this doesn't really change the fact that some kids just take after one parent more than the other a bunch of times. March 'n' April are the kids a' Bobby 'n' I, for example."

Another "hmm" of thought was given by the recently healed Gem, after which she next asked, "Why _did_ you let me stay, anyways? I vaguely recall this stand-off between everyone, but not a lot of the details…"

The woman's lips curled down at this. "Ah actually wasn't initially on board with the idea, believe it or not. As ya said, you were _very_ dangerous to even be around, but the kids said they first found ya cryin' out there in the woods instead of, say, causin' mindless destruction. And we humans have a bit of history with your kind; Ah've read enough and, y'know, _lived enough_ to recognize you as not being some ordinary animal the moment Ah saw you. An' if you weren't an animal and if you weren't human, then ya were probably a Gem.

"Ah knew it was risky takin' you in like Ah did. Heck, even after March 'n' May told him about your crying 'n' junk, stubborn ol' Bobby wasn't on board with lettin' you stay here. But me, bein' the leader here that Ah am, decided to let ya stay.

She sighed softly before continuing, "I hope you aren't _too_ offended when Ah say that I did so more out of pity than anythin' else. Plus, you didn't exactly seem like the most intelligent thing in the world, so I thought that I could maybe get some use out of you as some labor animal replacement. Sorry 'bout that," she said, having the decency to look a bit flustered at admitting this.

"Oh, I see. Don't worry yourself; I'm just happy that you managed to make me useful. It's kind of what we Gems are made for, after all. Being useful, that is. And more importantly I was healed, so that's a win-win in my data log."

She got some weird looks from either human at this choice of expression, as well as possibly her relative lack of offense at being used like that. The older human just said "Right," at this, clearly wanting to move things on.

"Down to more serious business… If you want to stay here, you can. Just be aware that'cha gotta keep workin' on the town's farms 'n' stuff. Basically what you're been doin', but hopefully with less people lookin' your way like some sorta beast." A shrug." I mean, you kinda were, but now you're not, so…"

"Uh-huh," she said, understanding the situation easily. "And I'll be thinking about that labor thing. Before that, though, I think you'd best give another one of your speeches to clear things up. I remember you doing a few already, so another one oughtn't be a problem, yes?" She asked this with a small smile, pretty much already knowing the answer.

"Ah suppose so. Welp," she rose, "guess Ah better get't thinking 'bout it. Ah'll probably be a while, so in the meantime, why don't'cha get to talkin' with mah other kid?"

With that rhetoric being said, she walked over to May - who, mind, was _still_ asleep - and gave the small thing a subtle nudge with a bare foot.

When a grumble was all that ensued, April took May by the arms and lifted her up, fittingly saying, "C'mon, now, up ya get! Not takin' "no" for an answer, Missy!"

May simply let put a series of prolonged grumbles, saying after that, "Fine, fine, Mommy, jus'..." A yawn. "Jus' let me down…"

She did as requested in a mocking sort of way, acting with such speed as to jostle the girl as she landed. Said girl was predictably offended by this.

"Why'd'ya gotta keep doin' that to me, Mommy!?"

"'Cause _you_ need to learn to get up in a timely manner! Honestly, March an' I have been talkin' with that Gem for the past several minutes 'n' you _still_ didn't wake up!"

"'n' how d'ya think Ah can be made to change that? Can't exactly help bein' a heavy sleeper, can Ah!?"

Frustration began to _really_ show itself on the mother's face. "Well, maybe we can get started on some trainin' with an alarm clock or somethin'?"

"You kiddin' me!? I dun' really wanna be scared every mornin' just 'cause _you_ wanna feel the need to get me up at a really early hour! What time is it anyways, six in the mornin'!?"

"Ah'll have you know that six in the mornin' is a perfectly alright time to get up, young lady-!"

The banter continued, the volume of which increased from an "inside voice" to full-on shouting by this point. The Gem glanced from the arguing pair to the small, nervous child next to her, and decided that enough was enough.

" _Shut it_!"

Unexpectedly, two voices instead of one said that. The other was the rotund human, Bobby, who came walking down the stairs just as he uttered this. His outfit was mostly similar to that of his wife's, but with a more fitting size that better fit his form.

Gem and human looked at each other before the former uttered, after a second superfluous throat clearing, "You're the dad here, whatever _that_ ' _s_ supposed to imply. You go first."

The scale of this human's masculinity was unlike anything the Gem was expecting, though considering her entire race may as well have been exclusively female she wasn't quite sure what she was supposed to expect. Bobby stroked his facial hair (' _Humans can grow hair on their_ faces!?') as he stated, with some strange sort of sarcasm, "Hmmhmm. _Unfortunately_. Actually, Ah think Ah need a more unbiased view a' this whole debacle _for once_. Why don't _you_ start, Miss Gem Lady? Preferably from the beginnin'?"

"... If you insist. April, was it? Yes, April - she was frustrated that… March? No, May - that May wouldn't get up from her sleep. I was kind of startled that she didn't wake up after all the talking I did with these two, to be honest. Anyways, April decided to be a bit rough with getting May up, and she didn't take too kindly to that, which lead to this little shouting contest."

"Much obliged, Miss. Izzere really any reason that'cha feel the need to be so bad with May just 'cause she don't wake up easily? You know Ah don't, and you mind that perfectly fine, yet when our kid does it ya get all mad."

The mother sighed before answering, "Well, it's… how to explain it… It's like… Ah love you that way you are, Bobby, you know that?"

"'Course."

"But of course you have some areas Ah think you need a bit of improvin' on. Like your heavy sleepin'? Thirty-one years old and ya _still_ have a hard time wakin' and gettin' up on time. Ah just… don't wanna have our kids have the same problem growin' up, yeah? So I figured that if Ah could train 'em up a bit early on, they wouldn't have the same problem as you do. And Ah've been havin' no issues with March over there, he gets up fine on his own, but no matter how much Ah try to deal with May's problem it just sticks to her like some awfully persistent gnat. And Ah guess Ah've just been buildin' up my frustration with this, 'n' so has May with the way Ah've been with here durin' this, an'…"

A second, even deeper sigh. "'s just been a mess, Ah think. Ya get what Ah mean, Hun'?"

A nod of the head from Bobby. "Yuppy, Dear. And Ah think Ah see where you're comin' from, if nothin' else, though it's really more than a mite silly. If May can't but help her sleepin' in, then Ah say let just let her. Not like she's got a paid occupation or school keepin' her from doin' so. And when that stuff _does_ come along, we can help her…" he paused as he searched for the right word, " _practice_ , I guess. 'zat sound good to you, Deareh?"

She hummed in thought before letting out an affirmative grunt. In response, her spouse said, "Now, what've Ah been sayin' about gruntin' all the time? Tell me what you're sayin' with some _clarity_ , Hun'."

 _Le sigh_. "If you weren't my husband Ah'd call you a sassbot. _Yes indeed_ , it sounds fine to me, and probably to May as well. Yeah, May?"

It took both human and Gem a second to realize that April was asking for a confirmation. "Whatever it takes to get you to stop bothering me so early," the kid said, practically grumbling to herself.

"Speak up, I can't hear ya over the sound of your smart-alecking," she retorted with some surprisingly swift mental speed.

"Ah said yes!" May bit back.

April was practically begging to return the edge of her daughter's voice twofold. "And what else was it that'cha said?"

Just as the Gem put a hand on the table to get up and stop this, as was Bobby as he opened his mouth, the youngest of the family made his presence remembered with a shout.

" _Stop_!"

Everyone's gazes snapped to him, and he appeared mighty tempted to shirk away at the last second. He took a breath and resisted the cowardice, however, and followed up:

"Just… Why dun' you two jus'… Go spen' some time apart? Cool off. Calm down… _Stuff_. And say sorry to each other? 'zat really so ha'd?"

It seemed that his was a voice of reason in spite of its lack of hardness, for the two ladies grumbled a "sorry" almost simultaneously before May headed upstairs to her and her sibling's room. April, meanwhile, stayed where she was, albeit with a slightly slouched posture as the tension rapidly left her person.

A moment or two after the door above clicked shut, she proceeded with her talking. "That kid a' mine… Feels a bit too much like me in my youth sometimes." A bent eyebrow from the youngest two remaining people made her elaborate, "Defiant when the mood strikes her, and a mite too active for a serious school setting. Then again that describes a bunch of kids her age, 'specially 'round these parts. A school not bein' anywhere in sight until 'bout an hour of driving probably ain't helping, either."

The Gem couldn't help but point out, "I have no idea about what this "school" is, but I doubt your approach to her attitude is helping on top of that. Ah, not to sound rude, but… you know." That last part came out rushed when the Gem realized that she may've been rude, though the woman simply shook her head to show her lack of affront. A simple "Oh?" was also let out, a non-explicit request to elaborate.

"Uh-huh. As far as I can tell - which, again to be fair, isn't much considering my small amount of time spent non-corrupted - you two butt heads over the smallest things. Doesn't help that you're both just fueling the other's anger when an argument starts, and on top of _that_ you're having a bit of a bad attitude when it comes to May in general." She paused for a moment. "Would it possibly help to think of her positives instead of her negatives?"

"... You're soundin' an awful lot like a therapist even then you're technically less than half a day old."

"It's how I was made," the Gem responded after a moment, simply yet with a small undertone of curiosity. "I - as well as Gemkind in general - emerge fully grown, ready for whatever task we're made for, at least in part. May take a bit of additional learning on top of our base, "default knowledge," so to speak, but otherwise we're set to do the task we're made for immediately. Though I don't really comprehend what _I_ was made for… Hrmmm…"

She just then realized that she was beginning to ramble, and next said with a bit of light-heartedness, "... Incidentally, I think I may have been made to teach or something. That was an off-track tangent, sorry."

"Ah, 's no big deal," Bobby spoke up. "Pretty interesting to get an insider's view on alien functions. Wouldn't ya say so yourself, Dear?"

She let out a distracted hum, fingers on her chin as she thought on.

"Are you _actually_ taking my suggestion seriously? That was half-rhetoric, right there."

"Indeed it was, though it turns out Ah'm havin' a hard time comin' up with more positives than negatives. I love m'May lots, yeah, but at the same time she just rubs me the wrong way on so many occasions…" Another sigh to add to the hypothetical jar. "Her 'n' Ah need to have a nice, long talk one a' these days. Get our feelings sorted out. But in the meantime…"

The mother righted her posture, which was continually slouching over, as she walked over to her son.

"Sorry you had to see another one of our arguments, March. You know how we get sometimes, and we sometimes don't get along…"

"Most of the time," the lad softly corrected.

"Hmm. But still, you ought to speak up and end our arguments before they begin. Just tell us to leave each other alone when we're about to start or somethin'. Can you at least try to do that for us, Pumpkin?"

He sighed out, "You two dun' ev'n have to argue in the firs' place… but… Ah'll try."

She gently tussled up his hair, grinning as she said, "An effort is what'd count, even if we won't like you tryin' to get involved."

She spent a second or three walking back next to her husband before telling the Gem, "And yes, Ah'll see about gettin' out there to announce this… _change of situation_ , Ah suppose. But methinks you'll have to get up there with me and start sayin' some words instead of just lookin' around all tense-like like you've been doin'."

The Gem jokingly replied, "Well, I couldn't exactly have said anything as some dumb beast, could I? Yes, I will say some things when you want me to. I just hope I don't get stage fright. I sort of remember all those crowds and feeling… _unwell_ while being the center of attention, to say the least."

"Ah could tell you were tryin' to not freak out every time and run away, yeah. And if you find yourself feelin' the same way when we get up there, then by all means, I'll let'cha leave, even if everyone else won't like it."

Her chagrin transformed to gratitude during those two statements. "Thanks. But if I can have a second chance at a good first impression, well… I'll try my best."

The orange Gem appeared apprehensive about talking to a crowd still, but her own statement appeared to have helped to partially settle her nerves.

"Gotcha. We'll leave in about an hour, when most everyone is up and at 'em. In the meantime, why don't'cha sit yourself down and watch some TV? Or maybe that book from last night? I know it set you off, but if it'll bring some stuff from the back of your mind to the front…"

The Gem thought for a moment. "I'll consider it. For now, though, I'm feeling tired in spite of the sleep. I think I will try "watching this TV," as you said it. Show me some of you humans' activities," she said, invitingly curious.

Bobby again made his presence known with his voice and an estranged shrug. " _Weeell_ , I'd less consider it an activity, what with the lack of _real_ investment… But if'n ya insist…"

* * *

 _A_ _uthor_ ' _s Note_ :

Time to mix things up with a different series of noises to commemorate this next chunk of the story: _Fwah_!

Man, I was gone for nearly _three months_. Time flies when nostalgia bites and one feels the need to play some old video games (namely _Pokémon Platinum Version_ ) and when college comes around to keep one occupied. Laziness hardly helps, either… I'll try and hurry updates up, but the significantly bigger chapter sizes and the steadily increasing workload of college may make this difficult, so I'm afraid that I can't truly promise anything.

Rest assured, however, that I _refuse_ to leave another story in the writer's block pit. Updates will probably be slow, but I _will_ get this done.

* * *

Disclaimer:

 _Steven Universe_ and any other referential materials found in this story do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners and subsidiaries, and I claim no ownership of them.


	14. To Convince

_Wrong nor Right_

Chapter Thirteen: To Convince

* * *

Same ol', yet simultaneously new ol'...

* * *

"Your media-based entertainment is weird. What is making these inexplicably living foods cry so easily? Are they just chronically depressed?" The television was giving the Gem some weird vibes, as was the show that was currently airing.

"Dunno what'cha mean b' "inexplicably" or "chronically" so… mebbe? Ah jus' feel for 'em a bit. Want 'em to get better, ev'n though they jus' go righ' back to bein' sad... Over 'n' over again..." March hummed in thought at this.

"Ah jus' think they're all wussies," May stated her opinion succinctly.

The gem responded, "You're probably not wrong. I have a disturbing lack of set purpose and gaps in my memory, but none of you have seen _me_ crying about it... _yet_."

The two adults, meanwhile, were thinking on a few different matters. April was ruminating on what specifically to say for her speech, jotting down ideas on a sheet with a beaten-looking pen while Bobby read through a newspaper and silently ruminated the economy.

A slamming of the pen is what drew the attention of the other four people in the room to April.

"A'ight. Think Ah got what I need to say all planned out. How's about you get over here 'n' come up with some stuff to say yourself, Miss Gem?"

She literally rose to the occasion, pacing over and giving the short notes a quick read before taking the pen (giving it a curious look, probably attempting to figure out which end goes where) and jotting her own words down on the opposite side. She mumbled a bit during this procession, "Could mention the patience... Gratitude… No, too easy, wouldn't convince... Hrmmm..."

"Convince? What're you tryin' to convince the town of?" Bobby inquired after hearing said word.

After a moment of thinking on how to word her reasoning, the Gem responded, "Well, they all could clearly tell how I was dangerous, yeah? So I figured that they may need a bit of warming up to the _real_ me, and some assurance that I'm no longer some unstable monster would probably help..."

The local matriarch let out a snort at this. "Ah already got that part a' the presentation on lockdown, Missy. Why don't'cha instead focus on things like your good character or your thoughts on what'cha want to do instead a' focusin' on the past so much?"

The Gem's next words were again delayed by some thinking. "Well... The thing here is that I'm not really sure what _I_ ' _m_ like, or even what I really want. I may as well be less than a day old, as I've already said, and I haven't bothered or had reason to do much serious reflection," _unless you count the thinking on going back to my emergence hole_ , she reminded herself, just now remembering her previous train of thought, "so I don't exactly have much to talk about." The blondie looked a bit awkward, if not full-on uncomfortable as she made herself confront this lack of familiarity with her own self.

The woman sighed. "Guess you're not wrong, and I'm not one for cheesy uplifting speeches, so methinks that you're gonna have to figure that bit out on your own. By extension, Ah guess I'd be fine if ya went ahead and assured everyone that'cher not gonna be a problem, but _please_ try to come up with some redeeming qualities about'cher self?"

The Gem sighed in turn. "I'll try."

The mother nodded at this. "And you'll try your darndest on this, however big your impact'll be." That wasn't a request so much as it was a demand, but the Gem nodded back in turn anyways. "You have a little over an hour 'till we get up 'n' get out there. Even though you're on a time limit, don't rush, and use whatever time you got left to practice out loud. You got me?"

"Uh huh. Why don't you practice, though?"

"Oh? That's just 'cause I've already given dozens on dozens a' speeches. By this point I'm right familiar with and over the pressure a' bein' the center of attention, and regardless most everyone knows me and won't judge. Give everyone a bit, and they won't be judgin' you, either," she finished with a reassuring tone.

 _Yes, well, it_ ' _s not exactly_ "in a bit" _in the now_ , _is it_? the home-grown alien wanted to retort, the pressure beginning to stack as she resumed thinking on the specifics of her part of the speech, but bit the response back. _No point in being a sassbot_... _Just get to thinking_.

And that she did, but nearly twenty minutes in and she came up with nearly nothing on the more personal aspects of what she was going to say. _Pretty sure that being defective will hardly assure the people_ , _nor will telling them_ , " _Surprise surprise_ , _I_ ' _m no longer a monster_!" At this point she let out a hum loud enough to be heard over of the sounds of the television.

"...D'ya need sum'elp with tha', Miss?"

"Hmm? Oh," she let out as she saw March a foot or so away, looking curious. "Well, at this point, I'd say that yes, I do. Have any suggestions?" she asked with a quirked brow.

"Uhmmm... Ya could try mebbe how'y went 'n' helped Timmy durin' that whole fight wit' that other Gem?"

"I'm not sure who this "Timmy" person is. Wait, unless you mean...?"

"Uh-huh. That boy you saved, the one who's lookin' a gift horse in the mouth."

The Gem resisted the temptation to succumb to her curiosity about both Timmy and the seemingly strange expression, acknowledging that there were things more pressing to attend to than her curiosity. "And what would I do from there?" No sarcasm, just curiosity.

"Well... There's how'y stepped in 'n' stuff? Could say you were 'n' are protective. Most folks like that'n a person, Ah thin'."

She smacked her lips after a second of rumination, making a sort of clicking noise. "Yes, that would help my image… What else have you got in that bright little head of yours?" She asked this with a genuine, encouraging smile.

The lad blushed a tad at the compliment. "Well, not much else, but with jus' a lil' bit a' good wording, ya can turn some'in' small into some'in' big..."

The bell rung. The townsfolk came. Murmurs began and spread quickly amongst the small crowd, not really recognizing the unfamiliar woman next the April. Said woman exhaled softly and slowly as the number of people, numbering a few dozen plus some change, looked upon her new form.

One glance around the area later by the mother, and April began, seemingly ignoring the Gem's lack of nerves.

"Alright, alright, pipe down. Ah know Ah've been callin' all ya down here a lot lately - once a day as a' late, has it been? - but y'all gotta understand that this situation is a rapidly evolving one. Ah'd assume y'all remember that Gem Ah've been housin' with those scary arms and weird noises?"

A number of affirmative words and grunts.

"Well, jus' last night somethin'... let's call it _strange_ happened. From what my kids told me, one moment she was jus' readin' a book over rocks, and none too suddenly she turned into _this."_

She gestured accordingly, everyone's eyes promptly turning back to her.

In spite of the audible "umm," April continued, "Turns out she wasn't supposed to be made like that, and with a bit of love and care she turned from... _whatever she was before_ back into her natural state. 'least, that's how Ah understand the story so far. And in case y'all couldn't tell, she's packin' a lot more intellect and may as well be human in that head a' hers. Which, incidentally, transitions pretty nicely into her introduction. Take it away, Gem-lady."

* * *

Cue music - _Fire Emblem_ : _Path of Radiance_ soundtrack - _His Father_ ' _s Son_

* * *

Her small, reassuring smirk got the Gem going a lot faster than she would have without the subsequent confidence boost. With a slight tremor in her voice, the Gem took her turn speaking.

"... Hello, fellow sapient beings."

 _wowawkardstartmuch_

Clear throat. Calm down.

" _So_ , as April has said, I am a Gem. Which makes me an alien, obviously. Though I think it could also technically be said that I actually am not one in the traditional sense. I was born right here on Earth, just like the rest of you. As a matter of fact, I came from a hole you could find a couple hours' worth of walking from here."

 _shouldhavegaveanumberwhatever_

"So I encourage all of you to _not_ think of me as some outsider or a monster. I may have been one just a few hours ago, yes, though you can't deny that even in that state I wasn't of help. What do you think that other monster of a Gem would have done to Timmy had I not coming running in to save him?"

This got some people mumbling or at least thinking worriedly.

"And on top of this I worked quite hard, mostly _voluntarily,_ might I add, to the point of _physically collapsing._ You can't deny that I wouldn't be of help around here, either, not with my kind of work ethic."

Some more mumbles, this time of a different, slightly more positive sort.

"And although I may've went on a _small_ rampage a yesterday, I was having a bad time mentally. Trust me when I say that, were you in my shoes there, you would have also thrown a hissy-fit at the world in general."

The third wave of mumbling was about as negative as it was curious.

 _don'tbringupthenegativesorpotentiallyinsult_

"With my point here being that, though I'm not human, I am still a _person._ April and her family have been showing me the utmost patience and hospitality, and though I would hardly ask the same for every single one of you, I just want you all give me a chance to fit in here on Earth. After all, I'm effectively less than a day old. Wouldn't want to throw this _small alien child_ back into the wilds, would you?"

A half-dozen people chuckled at this. One or two looked vaguely perturbed by the nature of the jape.

"And thanks for humoring me so far. I know I was a handful in terms of simply being around, but that will change in time, because _I_ have changed. You got me? Thank you all for listening."

Around half of the crowd clapped about as much out of politeness as it was being impressed. A few additional faces only smiled, and the rest retained a neutral expression.

The Gem's thoughts slowed to a normal pace, sighing deeply a couple seconds after April picked up where she left off. _Could have went a lot worse_ , _though a little better_. _All things considering_ , _for a first_ - _time speaker I_ ' _m kind of impressed with myself_. _Maybe convincing people tied into what I was supposed to be made for_? _Hmm_.'

"... and Ah hope you all make true on this here Gem's words. She only means y'all well, and y'all should do the same for her. It's like she said; she's new to Earth and straight-up _living,_ so do us all a solid an' _play nice_. Got that?"

The majority present gave a variety of affirmative responses.

"Good. You can all get back to your lives... _again._ Ah know Ah've got my hands full, and so do all of you!"

With all pieces being said, the crowd quickly began to disperse. Some loitered around and looked at the Gem in curiosity, wariness, or some combination of both before leaving. Only two ended up remaining: a thin, highly official-looking man and a certain kid that looked a couple years older than May.

The gentleman walked up and struck up a conversation with April. Being only a few feet away, the Gem naturally listened on.

"Miss April, are you _sure_ this'll end well? Not to say that I am doubting you _that_ much, but, well..." His accent felt a bit more familiar to the Gem compared to that of the rest of the folk she's talked to thus far.

"You _are_ doubting me that much, ain't'cha?"

A sigh before an affirmation.

"Well, how's about this: You just let me handle this whole shtick and whatever kind a' collateral that _probably_ won't even come up'll be payed up by me."

"I'm not liking the sound of that "probably," Miss Apr-"

"Why don't'cha just take my word for it?" she cut him off.

"You know I have a hard time doing that when the last time I did you-"

" _We don_ ' _t talk about the New Year_ ' _s incident_ , _Hawky."_

The mayor apparent practically sighed out, "I know, but I'm still doubting your ability to not make a mess of things in these kinds of cases because of it. You get what I'm laying down, here?"

"Yeah, yeah, but really, by this point all Ah _can_ ask you to do is trust me. You get what _Ah_ ' _m_ laying down?"

Hawky sighed a second time, after which the Gem felt the need to intervene. "You know, I'm right here if you want to talk to me. If anything, you should probably be talking to _me_ instead of April. You get what _I_ ' _m_ laying down?" she tried to joke.

"Well at least you're trying with the humor," the man let out politely as he extended his hand, "Mayor Arnold Hawky, Miss…?"

"I was being sincere when I said I didn't know what I would be called," she stated for the record as she looked at the offered hand, not really sure what to do in response.

"Ah."

Silence.

"... You're supposed to take my hand and shake it."

"Was wondering, yeah," as she did as was told. "And why do you humans shake hands like this?"

"Weren't joking about your time spent being alive, huh?" he muttered under his breath. "Well, we mostly do it for polite, formal introductions, or when someone sees a friend after a long while. Just another one of those "nice to see or meet you" kind of things, essentially."

"Hmm," along with a nod, "better keep that in mind for the future. In the meantime, though, I think it'd be better to get all of this tension and uncertainty out of the way right now instead of later. So I'll just ask this up front: Are there any _real_ problems that you have with me, personally? And don't be afraid of sounding silly or afraid, I'm legitimately not the one in a position to judge."

"Not a bad idea," April said as she re-joined the conversation, "Better make this whole situation of ours as concrete as we can as soon as we can. So tell us whatever kind a' concerns you've got."

He seemed a bit uncomfortable at this request. "... You really want me to?"

"Yeah."

"Uh-huh."

He sighed deeply as if to stifle an inner animal before beginning, quietly, "Do you know how much trouble you've caused already?"

The Gem thought that was a piece of rhetoric, but he went silent, so she responded, "Damage to a couple of buildings and destruction of some person's field?"

"Correct. And that property damage is already a number of _thousands_ of dollars to the structures and the loss of several hours of work done by that individual. And perhaps most importantly, the feelings of _safety_ and _security_ that has practically that was lost with the people who lived on those hourings and the ones who were even remotely involved in the incident, which, considering the size of this place, is _virtually everyone_. And, fun fact: _safety_ and _security_ been our staple since its inception… Until _you_ came along."

And then? Then the beast was _unleashed._

 _"You_! You and all you freakish, mutant _aliens_ all coming all over us humans and trampling us and our peace! Like we're a bunch of _abused pets_! As if you're better than us, _superior_ to us! Well lemme tell ya what: _ya_ _ain_ ' _t_! As a matter of fact, from what I've seen of you lot so far up 'till you, your kind're no less than a bunch of _deranged animals_! _You_ ought to be beneath _us_ , if not for _what you are_ than certainly for _what you all_ ' _ve been doing_ , and for what your kind would have done to this _entire planet_ all those thousands of years ago!"

His snarl lessened only slightly as he continued, in a low tone: "As far as I'm concerned, I've every right to kick you outta here or lock you up for a a number of years. In fact, the only reason I haven't done just that is because you've got a whole family of our people vouching for your sake. So you'd best not take even a single step outta line, or I'll plant my boot on that behind of yours so hard you'll go flyin' away into the horizon."

His piece being said, he stormed off to his place of business, which was already having work done on it by a mix of the locals and a few other, completely unfamiliar humans dressed in bright attire and wearing yellow hard hats.

"... Well at least he was bein' honest," was all April said to Mister Hawky's outburst. The Gem, for her part, was stock-still and was yet to completely get over that unexpected wave of unadulterated _anger_ directed at her. A number of seconds after April said her two cents, the Gem replied, "Yeah, I guess. Huh. I have a question, April."

"Yeah-huh?"

"What all has happened that involved Gem-related incidents while he's been around here?"

The woman put a thumb over her lips as she hummed. "Well, if you mean monster attacks, then I'd say… four, five times? Luckily they've been gettin' less and less frequent, to the point where the last one that happened before yesterday was nearly two years ago. And for some reason, every single time since Arnold's been mayor, the monsters've done quite the number on the town hall in particular, which puts more than a little bit of a damper on the town's business and, perhaps more severely, his mood. Shucks, last time I saw him this mad was that last attack two years ago. As for the whole "thousands of years ago thing," well…"

"Assuming _that_ part of my knowledge isn't defective as well, I think I know what colonizing this place would have entailed for the life on it." The Gem let out a deep, elongated sigh before she finished, "Guess I have some pretty big holes in his views to patch up, then... I mean, I know I'm _technically_ one of the monsters, but do I act like them at all in the now? Do I _really_?"

Some shakes of the head and a "nu-uh."

"Thought so. Looks like I'll just have to make him get over himself with some effort and patience... Let's hope I'm a patient one by design, yeah?"

"Ah thin' you'll get 'im on yer side 'fore long," May spoke up. March nodded enthusiastically to May's guess, going all in for the positive reinforcement.

"Your vote of confidence is appreciated, but I don't think this is a wound that'll only heal with time…"

Unbeknownst to anyone of the fam', a certain preteen began his approach toward the group, and only made himself known with a "hey."

The Gem observed the lad's plain blue jeans and equally plain white t-shirt, as well as his matching complexion with everyone else around on top of his messy sandy hair and surprisingly hard features for one his apparent age.

"Hello? Oh, it's you, Timmy. What'cha need?" said April as the small group turned their attention toward him.

"I wanna talk to this Gem in private." His eyes were focused solely on said Gem rather than April as he said this.

"... 'kay. But remember what I said about playin' nice-"

"Yes, _Mom_ , I'll be the most _polite young man you'll ever see_ ," he snarked, taking the Gem's arm a bit roughly before just about dragging her behind a nearby building, specifically the one that wasn't the town hall that ended up being totalled.

"You know, if you want to be sassy you can try something better than sarcasm-"

"Don't wanna hear it, Gem-lady. Listen here; I know you did just about everyone quite the solid a' gettin' rid a' that monster and kinda-sorta savin' my hide, but Ah still think you oughta take it easy on the whole "faking the good gal" shtick. The mayor 'n' I know what'cha _really_ are, 'n' that's a menace to humanity!"

The Gem stifled a giggle at this show of apparent idiocy (at least in her eyes). "Is that so? And what has been shown to you so far to make you think that? Give me some examples."

"Hmph! Ah've read enough history to know what your kind did all those years ago! The Ancient Gem War, they call it! Buncha rebels against practically everyone else a' your kind, vastly outnumbered and only really seen with a buncha weirdos in nearby Beach City! Wonder what that says about you lot as a whole, huh?"

The Gem felt tempted to ask about the Beach City rebels, but more urgent was the growing frustration she was feeling. With a sigh, she began, "Okay, I'm going to have to stop you there. What is with _all of you_ _humans_ with _generalizing_? "Oh, hey, they started a war with our species as collateral a bunch of years back, better start hating on them for all of eternity!"

Her voice began to raise as she took a step toward the sandy-haired boy. "Well, listen up! As long as I've consciously lived, I've been trying at every turn to be nothing short of the most polite person I can be, and when I haven't been it's because I legitimately didn't know any better."

She took a second step forward. The human took a step back.

"And, you know, you're being pretty rude with how many assumptions you're making. And on top of that, if I may be less than polite for just a moment, is the basic principle of logical sense that you're pointedly ignoring. Fun fact: I am _not_ one of the Gems from that old war. You don't see me calling you a-an _ugly hairy ape_ that _your kind_ probably were thousands of years ago! That's what you're doing, looking at events or history that stopped mattering _dozens of times the length of your lifespan in the past_! Unless you all suddenly live more than a couple centuries," she muttered that bit, "but my point here is that you need to stop looking at _Gems_ and start looking at _me._ 'cause I'm not the entirety or my race, and nor are you. 'zat so hard to get behind? Is it really?" Her tone was now just as pleading as it was frustrated, if not more so. Her posture then relaxed out of resignation as the boy looked conflicted, running off a couple of seconds'-worth of staring later.

She sighed and shook her head as the lad left her sight. She walked over to the family she knew best, and after being asked, she responded: "That boy's got some ridiculous reason to dislike me. Damaging the place after all this continued harassment with Hawky, I can sort of understand, but it feels like Tommy's just hating on me for no concrete reason. Even after I told him that that was _thousands of years ago_ and that it really _doesn_ ' _t matter at this point_ , I don't think I managed to change his mind. There I was, thinking humans could change easily, and then it turns out you all sometimes can't! And this is effectively a _sentient rock_ telling you this."

The parents shot the Gem a soft glare at that last bit. "Ah, no offense intended, Just stating facts. A bit frustrated is all."

The matriarch took to explaining, "Hrmmm… What'cha gotta understand, Miss Gem, is that us humans cling to constance whenever we can. Change ain't our thing, even though we live surrounded by the concept and are things that change a lot, ourselves. Something about a default fear a' the unknown or some abstract nonsense. Like ya said earlier, it'll prolly take more than just words and time to persuade both a' them and whoever else is doubting your character to stop harpin' on ya."

"What they probably want is action, then..." The Gem sighed once again when she realized what she probably had to do. "Guess it's time to do what I was doing before."

"An' what was 'at?" March inquired.

"Good old manual labor. Again, let's hope I was made with this in mind, yeah?" she asked rhetorically in turn, the grin she had not not fully reflected in her eyes.

"Well, where're ya gonna start with that? Doubt anyone's gonna take ya to do their farmin' work after that lil' rampage you went on durin' your... _previous phase_ ," the matriarch worded mindfully, "and what we have to do on our crop at this point won't even amount to an hour a day 'till nearly three months from now.

The Gem interpreted "three months" as being fairly long, and with this in mind, she next said, looking over at the ruined section of town, "Oh, I think I already have an idea…"

* * *

 _Author_ ' _s Note_ :

Shyaaah!

No real excuse this time. I've practically had all the time in the world and I haven't been bothering to use it to work on this; methinks some priority re-ordering is warranted. Sorry, _Pokémon_ …

* * *

Disclaimer:

 _Steven Universe_ and any other referential materials found in this story do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners and subsidiaries, and I claim no ownership of them.


	15. Meet not Greet

_Wrong nor Right_

Chapter Fourteen: Meet not Greet

* * *

Now who could this mysterious chick _possibly_ be?

* * *

"Hey, uh? You folks need help with anything work-related?" the Gem asked the couple of people still around the site of ruin, trying her best to appear genuine. The lot didn't exactly appear to be doing much, mostly milling around and talking to each other about the usual daily grinds and such.

Said people looked at her a bit nervously before one, a nondescript middle-aged woman, pointed out for the group, "Well at the moment, no, 'cause someone up 'n' did everyone the solid a' sortin' all the debris out ahead a' time and Mayor Hawkey's already commissioned a group a' carpenters and rented a couple a' dump trucks to come in and clean this mess up... _again_. So really, not much to do, least 'till the trucks arrive in a few hours."

The Gem felt tempted to insert the fact that is was her who did the deed, but, thinking that would be coming on too strong with the whole "good person" image, instead tried not to let her disappointment at being shot down visibly show by acting casual. "Hmm. Alright. Well, if something _does_ prop up, you'll know who to look for…" The Gem added, just in case, "That would be me, of course."

"Uh-huh."

The Gem took off after a couple of seconds of awkwardly standing about. After the small crowd was out of earshot, she started muttering to herself, "So helping with that's a no-go for now, and I doubt anyone's going to want me on their fields after what I did the last time... Oh yeah, how did I manage to forget about _that_ of all things!?"

A couple minutes later and the orange Gem was in front of the door to the most familiar place she knew. Opening the door after some slight hesitance, she entered and was greeted by a certain matriarch.

"Ah, Miss Gem," April promptly said on seeing her, "you'll prolly wanna learn to knock on the door a couple times to let people know you're comin' in. Never know when you'll stumble on something you ain't invited to."

The Gem nodded in response.

"That aside, you need anything? Or're you just lookin' for someplace to hang out?"

"Both, I think." She then relayed what she had uttered to herself a short while prior.

"So I was hoping that you had something for me to do on your field? 'Cause I otherwise don't have anything else to be doing aside from a little task that involves your children, and I'd rather make that a last priority because I don't know for certain how long that'll take."

The woman let out a small snort at her request. "Here's some agricultural know-how for ya: potatoes are a pretty low-maintenance crop. The second-hardest part's plantin' 'em right in the first place, which you and I already handled, and the hardest part comes with harvestin' 'em in a few months. Between then and now, all we gotta do is occasionally water, lightly fertilize and weed out certain parts a' the field, and that first one's really only the case on the rare occasion that the rain doesn't do it for us. We live right near the coast, some weather like that's really pretty common."

As she took a tip of milk from the glass on the counter, Bobby, currently across the entirety of the house and watching TV on a chair, took his turn to speak for the both of them. "Now, whazziz about needin' our kids for somethin'?"

The Gem tried her best to sound assuring as she answered, "Oh, it's not going to be anything particularly dangerous. All I want to do is ask them to take me back to where they found me, and from there I'll see if I can remember where my emergence hole was. I'm more going out there for curiosity's sake if anything, and otherwise I will legitimately have nothing to do but sit around and watch your television until the "dump trucks" get here, whatever those are."

"Hrmm... You gotta point there, and as far as Ah'm concerned there're better things for March 'n' May to be doin' then playin' their Nintonda whatsis 24/7. You agree, Hun'?"

April put a hand under her chin as she responded, "Humm... Ah'ight. But be extra-careful with March 'n' May; if Ah learn that they got hurt and you coulda' stopped that from happenin'..." She let the threat hang in the air for a moment.

"I don't doubt you'll do something harsh enough to dissipate my form," the Gem replied, understanding her point of view. "You children are clearly precious to you, and I'll see to it that nothing happens to them."

The mother looked curious at the word choice for the Gem's first sentence, but nevertheless went upstairs to fetch the youngsters, though when she came back down it was without the pair of kids. "Give 'em two or three minutes. Somethin' about trading their "Pokeymen" to evolve 'em, whatever that means, and they'll be right down."

And indeed they did come down after a couple of minutes, and May, not appearing pleased at the interruption of her game session, said with her familiar sassy tone, "What is it?"

"Miss Gem here wants to go out to wherever it is you found her and find her... "emergence hole," was it?"

"Yeah, that."

"And she was wonderin' if ya both could go with her and help her find her way back to where she came from."

"... How long'll that take, Mom?"

"You know that shouldn't matter if you're doin' someone a favor, May!"

"Not if it involves so much time walking-!"

The Gem already saw what was coming and commanded, " _Stop_."

Both girls looked to the Gem in query.

"I didn't ask for this only to have to listen to two people - who, by all means, ought to be closer! - argue like this." She couldn't help but pinch the bridge of her nose, sighing briefly and releasing her hold before continuing, "I can probably do this by myself, but it'd take a while and involve a lot of trial and error. If it'll be too much of a bother for the both of you, than I'd rather not interrupt what you're doing, but I'll be going whether you're with me or not. Are you in or are you not?"

The brother didn't take long to make his decision, going by the Gem's side after just a couple of seconds of thought. May, meanwhile, was battling internally, pride versus the want to help, and luckily for the Gem her helpful nature won out.

"Fine, fine! I'll go with 'er! Just stop pressurin' me 'n' gimme a minute!"

As May did whatever it was that needed doing upstairs, the Gem figured she'd better show her gratitude, whispering to the boy, "Thanks for coming to me so fast. Appreciate that."

March merely hummed and blushed slightly at her graciousness.

* * *

Cue music - _Kirby_ : _Star Allies_ soundtrack - _Honey Hills_ ( _Forest Area_ )

* * *

About ninety seconds later, May descended the stairs, a small bottle of water in either hand. She gave one to her younger brother and stuffed the other in a pocket. The Gem asked out of simple curiosity, "Why is it that you're taking water with you?"

"'S what our bodies need, and if we're walkin' for an hour and a half or more it helps stopping us from gettin' tired," she responded after a moment to think about her explanation. "I mean, we prolly don't _need_ it, but it sure'll make this trip a bunch more comfortable."

"Remind me to get and read a data log about your bodies at some point. Having a really hard time telling how your fleshy bodies work sometimes, you know?"

April gave a shout to close the door behind her to the Gem, which she did as May let out a small "heh." "Yeah, like, nineteh-nine percent of us don't even get how our bodies work."

The Gem was genuinely shocked by this information. Sure, she understood that she had a bias with the "pre-programmed" knowledge that comes with being a Gem, but even without that immediate convenience the Gem would assume that most humans would know the intricacies of their own forms.

' _What a silly bunch_ ,' she thought, immediately regretting how condescending that sounded. ' _Stop that_ , _they are humoring and helping you whenever they can_... _For the most part_.' She grimaced lightly at the recollection of Hawkey's outburst.

"Oh yeah, speaking of bodies, how does _yours_ work, Miss Gem?"

"Been wondering too," March spoke up.

After taking several seconds to think, she responded, "Well, that's a bit of a complex question, though the answer is probably less complex than with a human's..." The Gem cleared her throat and began her little lecture:

"The only part of a Gem that is _really_ physical is... well, _her Gem_. The body you see talking to you right now is really just a form made up of light energy that is tightly packed together, projected by the physical gemstone and sustained mostly by magic. If the form is damaged enough, the Gem will retract her physical projection to avoid straining an "internal energy supply," if you will, that is needed to live long-term. Eventually the Gem will be able to recreate and project her form again with no real harm done, potentially with some appearance differences, potentially not. That is up to the Gem in question. If the gemstone itself is sufficiently damaged or straight-up broken into pieces, however..."

The mere _mention_ sent an inexplicable shiver up the Gem's spine. "Well, you can probably guess what happens to that poor Gem."

An uncomfortable silence hung in the air for a while after that. No one acknowledged a thing when the trio passed by the town border, where fresh grass met not-quite-as-fresh grass, too busy thinking to care at that moment.

March felt the need to ask a follow-up question a couple minutes later, half out of curiosity and half out of wanting to get rid of the looming tension. "... You say "her Gem" like all Gems're girls?"

The Gem smiled, glad for the distraction from the morbid subject of shattering, as she answered, "A good question! Yes, if my "programming" is right, all Gems project a form that is surprisingly similar to a human female, as opposed to a male. I don't know why this is or if this is mere coincidence or something else, nor do I know if there are other Gems out there that have a better answer than me."

"And whazzis about "programming?"' May asked in turn.

"Well, this needs a bit of explanation about other Gems in general. Gem society is one that focuses a lot on giving Gems a set purpose in life. Quartzes fight, Pearls serve, and... Diamonds lead," she virtually spat the word. "For the sake of convenience and efficiency, all Gem types are given a certain set of traits before the magical essence that eventually becomes a Gem is injected into the ground, which then emerge some time later. Quartzes are usually brash and eager for a tussle, for example, though there may be the rare exception here and there. Does that answer your question?"

Aside from asking what a Quartz was and what a couple of other words meant, the two humans understood.

"And what were _you_ supposed to be? What were ya supposed to do?"

The Gem sighed. "That, I have no idea on. I assume humans don't have that same thing going on as we do? The whole "purpose and design" shtick, I mean."

"That'd be a no."

"Uh-huh."

"Gotcha," the Gem responded promptly just as they exited entered a small forest and emerged back into a familiar, semi-open grotto. "Maybe that's for the best. I dunno, I haven't exactly had a lot of time to think on it, what with only being a few days old. Also, do either of you know where to go from here? 'Cause I don't."

"Nope."

"See a couple 'prints..."

Indeed, as the younger human pointed out, there was a trail of relatively large indents in the ground, as well as a few random poke-holes near them here and there. They ought to be thankful it hadn't rained in the few days since the Gem's emergence, all things considered.

"Good find. Let's follow my trail, see if it goes all the way back to my hole."

And so is how the next while was spent, on top of a couple of back-'n'-forth questions. Eventually and finally the three arrived, spotting their objective under a clear sun in the middle of a rather scenic, open field.

Some unexpected "company" was to be found standing a short distance from the Gem's emergence hole, however. Her back was turned to the two humans plus one Gem, and indeed it was by default a "her," as even from the back she looked too strange to be human. The Gem appeared to be analyzing the hole, arms crossed and with what would have been a thoughtful expression on her face were it visible to the others. Cube-looking black hair and a primarily purplish-red-on-black palette were just few of the Gem's features that can be discerned just from the side that was visible to the trio.

Just as "our" Gem opened her mouth to say something, the other unknown Gem turned around, letting out a small gasp of what may have been surprise.

The two stared at each other, one far more tense than the other, with only the wind breaking the silence. The unknown Gem's left hand came to her chin, thick lips turned down in thought, and after several seconds of silence, the Gem said, in a vague sort of accent and with a slight adjustment of her shades, "I'll be back with company. Expect us tomorrow; same time, same place."

And then she was bounding away with some massive leaps, leaving no sign of her presence behind and leaving no room for the humans or the Gem to ask questions.

'... _Didn_ ' _t even give me her Gem type_ , nor could I tell. _If I didn_ ' _t know any better I_ ' _d think that she was just being enigmatic to look cool_.'

"That kind of worked, though," she mumbled audibly without realizing.

"Who was the weird lady?" asked March, with a light tremble as if he didn't hear her idle musing. "Does she know you?"

The Gem's mind started churning faster than usual at the seriousness of both the questions and the situation in general. "Well I don't know her, and I haven't exactly been around for long so I doubt she knows me. More likely she's just wary of this new Gem suddenly showing up on this planet that probably doesn't exactly have much in terms of Gem population, and as such she wants to assert that I'm not a threat. But to _who_ or _what_? And how was she even aware of my hole _being there_ when my emergence probably wasn't really that noticeable of an event? Hrmmm..."

"That's a lotta questions and not a lotta answers," May said dubiously.

"Yeah, but hopefully we'll have more of that second bit come tomorrow. And before you ask, I don't intend on fighting her. I don't even really know what I'm capable of in general, let alone in a fight, so that probably wouldn't be a wise decision. Plus like you said, she may have some answers to some very important questions, so I don't exactly want to squander my opportunities, here."

She could already feel tension and excitement rising in equal measure, but after a couple seconds she exhaled through her non-existent lungs and calmed herself. "Right, Gem, that's still a day away, however long that is. Better be patient…"

The Gem only _just then_ remembered why she came out here in the first place. She paced over to a hole, analyzing its shape relative to her current one and noting the large difference, and after taking a glance down into it she felt the inexplicable need to hop inside. She did so and was surprised at how she ended up effectively being the square peg in the round hole; the Gem could fit, but only just and only if she wriggled around into an awkward position. "Guess I really was a _lot_ different, huh. Doesn't even feel like home. Not sure what I was expecting in the first place, though."

She then grabbed the edge of the hole and hauled herself out, explaining to the two kids, "Don't know why, but I just felt the need to do that. Good news is that our mission is accomplished! We can start going home now." Both kids groaned lightly at their trip only _really_ being half-done, but figured that the sooner they got home the better. With this thought in mind, the three started the trek home.

It wasn't long after her exclamation before the Gem asked, "Oh, yeah, how long is a day? Either of you care to explain?"

That, on top of explaining other Earth timekeeping methods, ended up taking most of the time for the return trip. It was a looping and mildly frustrating conversation, much like many other human-borne concepts.

* * *

 _Author_ ' _s Note_ :

 _Toriyaaah_!

Yeah, no real excuses for the massive delay, here. Had a ton a' free time and didn't really prioritize that well; I'll see what I can do to change that come the future.

Also, "A Single Pale Rose" simultaneously did and did not catch me off-guard. Nice to see that bit of speculation come to fruition!

All due shout-outs to shadow9896 for the story Follow and to Paperfort for Favoriting and Following not only the story, but also me. Gee whiz, dudes, it's appreciated!

* * *

Disclaimer:

 _Steven Universe_ and any other referential materials found in this story do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners and subsidiaries, and I claim no ownership of them.


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